


A Riddle to Solve

by sstar2000



Series: The Demonic Series [1]
Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Action, Bullying, Dark, Death, F/F, F/M, Fantasy, HarryPotter - Freeform, Heartbreak, Humor, Love, M/M, Murder, Mystery, Pain, Psychopath, Romance, Sociopath, Suspense, Thriller, YA, teen, tomriddle
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-03-31
Updated: 2020-12-12
Packaged: 2021-02-28 22:54:44
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 45
Words: 82,467
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23404852
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sstar2000/pseuds/sstar2000
Summary: "𝐋𝐨𝐯𝐞?" He scoffs, black eyes emotionless. "𝐈 𝐝𝐨𝐧'𝐭 𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐧 𝐤𝐧𝐨𝐰 𝐰𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐦𝐞𝐚𝐧𝐬."She was a girl born in the midst of a war. She was the forgotten child. The sister of the girl who sacrificed herself, saving the boy with the lightning bolt scar. He'd come in the night, ripping away everyone she had ever loved. He'd taken away her family and shattered her beyond repair."𝐋𝐨𝐯𝐞?" She asks, blue eyes hard. "𝐈𝐭 𝐦𝐞𝐚𝐧𝐬 𝐧𝐨𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐨 𝐦𝐞 𝐚𝐧𝐲𝐦𝐨𝐫𝐞."She was raised to only know neglect and pain. She had been thrown away by her own blood. No one ever paused to ask for her wellbeing. No one paused to make sure she was all right."𝐒𝐓𝐀𝐘 𝐀𝐖𝐀𝐘 𝐅𝐑𝐎𝐌 𝐌𝐄!""𝐍𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫."No one expected her to be more than just a poor orphan. No one expected her to have power beyond what anyone knew possible. The wars would come to pass. The wars would kill millions. Yet she was their only salvation."𝐈 𝐡𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐲𝐨𝐮.""𝐈 𝐞𝐱𝐩𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐧𝐨𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐥𝐞𝐬𝐬."Just as she was learning to love again, starting to feel like she had a family... She was ripped away from her family with a single task.Kill the man who caused it all."𝐀𝐕𝐀𝐃𝐀 𝐊𝐄𝐃𝐀𝐕𝐑𝐀!!!"
Relationships: Romance - Relationship, Valentine Dumbledore / Tom RIddle
Series: The Demonic Series [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1683634
Comments: 2
Kudos: 6





	1. A Deadly Request

I was currently in Professor Dumbledore's office.

He was pacing like a caged animal, and I was staring at him in confusion. "Headmaster?" I question in worry and surprise.

"Valentine... What I'm about to tell you will change everything. But you must keep it a secret.....You must never trust anyone with these words." He orders, long beard twitching in fear.

"Professor, you're scaring me. What's wrong?" I ask, voice high. If the great Dumbledore was frightened, then something was incredibly wrong.

"You and Granger are the brightest witches in school." He drawls, ignoring me. He was still walking back and forth, pulling on strands of his beard. "But Granger is needed here. She serves a purpose here." He grumbles.

I raise an eyebrow at him, "Alright???....." I say slowly, and he turns to me with a sigh.

"Lord Voldemort? You're aware of him?" He asks, and I stare at him like he was crazy.

"Excuse me?! He was the man who killed my parents!!!! He made both my nephew, niece and myself orphans.... and you ask if I know him?" I hiss out like a snake, and he sighs, nodding sharply.

"Yes...I'm quite aware of that, Ms. Evans, but what if I told you all that could be erased. You could have your parents back, Harry too. All the people killed in the war could be saved." He informs me, and I stare at him like he's crazy.

"What are you talking about?" I look at him in bewilderment, and he sighs.

"You are the only person who can undo the wrong that has occurred." He answers in a mysterious tone, and I find myself paling.

"You said I could bring my parents back. My parents?! My parents and my sister?" I ask him, and he nods.

"Yes, would you be interested in that?" He asks me, and I glare at him.

"Yes, of course, I'd be interested in that, but don't you dare manipulate my feelings. tell me exactly what I will be getting myself into." I snap, making him nod. He seemed flustered, depressed and frantic. His hands were shaking, and I pause in my steps. Dumbledore was worried? What was going on here?

"Valentine. Lord Voldemort will win the war. He will kill thousands if we don't stop him. You must kill him and end all this suffering. Kill him and stop him from killing your parents and everyone he's killed and hurt in his life."

I noticed he kept bringing up my parents, and I was getting annoyed. I knew he was using my love for them as an incentive for me to help him as if I needed an extra one. Just the chance to stop all the pain and death going on right now was enough for me -the chance to see my mom and dad again. The chance to embrace them and tell them I loved them for one last time was all I could wish for but the opportunity to have them back.... to have parents again. To have my family.... that would be a dream.

"How do I kill him?" I breathe, and he looks at me dead in the eye.

"I am going to take you to a place far from here. In this place, Lord Voldemort will be weak and not as strong as he is right now. You need to kill him there before he gets stronger." Dumbledore demands, making me pale.

"Okay," I whisper, my own hands shaking. "I'll do it. But why me?" I ask, and he eyes me knowingly.

"You know why Ms. Evans." He says, and I stare at him, jaw clenched.

"Oh... " I muse, realizing why, and stare at my hands in haunted terror.

"So, you understand." He ponders, and I nod, eyes glinting in knowledge.

"I understand perfectly fine." I quip back with my eyes narrowed.

"You won't need anything where you are going. Everything you will need will be there." He says, and I adjust my satchel closer to my body.

"Alright. My satchel stays, though." I grip it tight, and he looks at me.

"You'll probably want to change when you get there, my dear." He says and takes two things out from his robes. He slams them on the table in front of me.

"What are these?" I stare at the compass and vial on the table in utter bafflement.

"It's a compass, and that's a potion." Dumbledore answers and I give him a deadpanned look.

"I know what they are!! But what are they for?! Why are they so important?!" I demand, and he sighs.

"This compass will be your guide. When you find yourself lost, it will point the way." He tells me in a vague tone, and I gape at him.

"No, Really!?" I say in a highly sarcastic tone. I could hear the little ounce of fear I was feeling ring in my voice. He shoves the two items in my arms, and I stumble back as he waves a hand.

"Drink the POTION NOW!" He roars, and my eyes widen in horror as he waves a hand, and a puff of white smoke fills the entire room.

I fumble with the lid of the vial. "DRINK IT!! DRINK IT NOW!!" He screams, and if I hadn't seen how smart and powerful he is firsthand, I'd think he was an utter madman.

If I was drinking some sort of poison, I was coming back as a ghost to haunt his arse. I chug the liquid down, and the lid clatters to the floor as the white smoke fills my entire vision, and everything starts to spin. The liquid was thick, putrid, and I found myself choking on it.

"Valentine Dumbledore!!!" He yells, making me whip my head up to look around frantically. "Defeat Riddle before twilight of the fifth year. Raze the snake. Crown your head." I hear Dumbledore boom, his voice ringing in my ears.

The world spins faster and faster until I'm screaming, clutching the vial and compass tightly in my hands.

I feel myself falling, and I'm screaming louder, my heart in my throat. "I'm dying. I'm dying. Oh my god, Dumbledore killed me!!" I screech, covering my eyes, and I continue falling for what seems like an eternity.

My eyes slam shut, and I hit the ground with such a loud thump, my heart stops in fear.

So much pain. So so much pain.

The pain takes over my whole being, and I'm barely aware of screaming.... my screaming until everything goes black and I'm sucked into oblivion.


	2. Futuristic

My eyes flutter open, and there was a second of the most immense pain I'd ever felt in my life. Tears of raw agony slide down my cheeks and a jagged sob escapes my mouth before all the pain leaves as quick as it had arrived, and I'm frozen solid on the floor, staring at the blue sky and everything that surrounded it.

I tilt my head to the side, and my eyes crinkle in confusion at the blurry sight I see. Blinking twice, I sit up, staring at the intricate designs of the buildings that surrounded the Hogwarts Courtyard.

"What in the world?" I mutter softly, and I look around, trying to see if it was just a trick of the light or if I was indeed, in fact, still in Hogwarts.

"Stupid. Stupid. Stupid." I mutter under my breath. I get up to my feet, staring at myself and the things still clutched in my hand. "So it wasn't just a bad dream." I cringe.

Stuffing the compass safe in my bag, along with the empty vial in my hands, I walk up the steps slowly. My feet made a weird crunching sound, and I look down to see snow. Beautiful, white, pure snow.

"Snow in April?" I murmur, leaning down to grab some in my hands. It seemed real enough. I shrug my shoulders. "Probably the twins." I decide, shaking my head and continuing up the steps of my school.

I walk in and look around, searching for Harry or Luna. I wanted to tell Harry what a whack Dumbledore had become. Telling me I needed to kill freaking Lord Voldemort.

That was a joke.

A sick one actually.

Making me believe that I could have my parents again if I wanted to.

I had Defense against the Dark Arts this period, and I walk into class expecting to see Professor Lupin giving me a disappointed look, but there's a woman I had never seen before in my life.

She was glaring at me; her stance and eyes seemed confused as she looked between the full class and me.

"My dear, are you lost?" She asks, but I'm even more confused than she is. I look around the room. I couldn't see anyone I recognized from school, not one single soul. My mouth was drying up, and my palms were growing sweaty.

"Um..." I hold my hand out, stumbling back. "I think I have the wrong room. Sorry." I say quickly and rush out the class, my feet feeling like jello.

I didn't talk to every single one of my peers, but I did know most of them and could recognize at least three quarters if not all of them when I entered a class.

I look behind me as I quickly stride through the hallways of the school. I didn't even know who that professor was. I know all the professors. This was so weird. I was definitely dreaming. That fall must've hurt my brain or something.

"Hello? Who are you?" A man asks, and I whirl around to come face to face with a man I've never seen before. His mustache was gingery blond, and he had the hair to match. His hair was thick and the colour of straw. His vast forehead wrinkled in confusion at the sight of me, and he placed a pudgy hand on his chin using his fat thumb to rub circles there.

"I've never seen you before in my life?" The man demands and I look at him in confusion.

"What do you mean? I'm a student here." I say in a high pitched tone. He stared at my robes with his wide blue eyes and looked even more confused.

"I'm head of Slytherin. I would know if you belonged to my house." He demands seeming quite insulted at my assumption.

"No, you're not the head of my house. Snape is." I demand, feeling myself getting faint.

"Snape? Who is Snape?" He demands voice stern. My eyes widen in horror, and I let out a squeak of terror.

"WHAT do you mean??!" I exclaim. "Snape? Severus Snape? He's the potions professor and the head of my house." I ask, and he shakes his head, looking at me like I was insane.

"I have to sit down." I sigh and collapse on the floor.

"Oh, dear! Are you alright!?" The strange professor asks me, and I nod, trying to catch my breath.

"Yeah. Yeah." I breathe but shake my head. "Nope. No. NO." I answer, and he looks alarmed at my panic.

"My dear, come. Let me take you to the hospital wing. I need to consult with Headmaster Dippet." He chimes, pulling me to my feet, but I'm frozen.

"Headmaster, who?" I ask. He smiles at me.

"Why Headmaster Dippet, of course." He answers, and I pale.

"What- What year is it?!" I demand, and he looks like I was demented.

"Alright, deary, let's go. To the Infirmary." He hauls me forward, but I shove him back.

"WAIT!!! What YEAR IS IT!?" I scream, pulling back on the man's hard grip on my wrist. I was frantic, and my hands were trembling in fear. Dippet had been the headmaster before Albus. That was why I was freaking out.

"It's 1935, my dear." He shakes me out of my stupor, but I'm frozen in place. I'd gone back in time.

"What." I breathe in absolute horror. I've been sent back in time 59 years. 59 years. None of my friends were even alive at this time. Not even their parents were alive, but I am. My own parents weren't alive yet. MY OWN parents wouldn't even be born for another 25 years. I could feel my throat closing up and sweat starting up.

"I'm going to take you to the infirmary now!" He orders and proceeds to half carry, half escort me to the Infirmary. I almost faint again at the next view I see. No Madam Pomfrey anywhere.

A different healer comes over and takes one look at me before ushering me to a bed. "You need food, something with a lot of glucose in it." The woman demands and looks at the man who'd brought me in here. "Professor Slughorn, what happened to the poor child?" She asks in a concerned voice, and I look up at the professor.

"I don't even know who she is." He grumbles.

"I want to see Albus Dumbledore!" I shout out without thinking, my whole body shaking in fear.

"Albus?" Slughorn asks, and I nod frantically.

"I WANT TO SEE ALBUS!!!" I shriek again. Both of them flinch.

"Alright. Alright. Alright. What's your name, child?" Professor Slughorn asks. "So, I can tell him what student requires his presence." He looks at me.

"Valentine Ev-" I stop as Dumbledore's voice fills my memory. Valentine Dumbledore!!! Defeat Riddle before twilight of the fifth year. Raze the snake. Crown your head.

"Valentine Dumbledore." I finish harshly, and they stare at me wide-eyed.

"Dum-Dumbledore?!" He stutters, and I nod.

"Yup. That's my name." I finish, eyes hardening.

"Alright, Valentine, sweetie. Here just eat this for me, please." The healer says, and I look at the tube of instant glucose, deciding to agree with her. I gulp the sickeningly sweet substance down and feel myself relax a bit into the comforting beds that I knew so well.

"Ah, I have such a headache," I mutter to myself, wanting to go back home. I wanted to be with my friends and hang with Harry and the twins. I wanted to sit and laugh with Neville and Luna. I felt tears pulsing at the back of my eyes and sniffle, pushing them back.

It was around half an hour later when Slughorn comes back with two other men in his company.

"Who's this? She is not a student at my school." The man says. I assumed this was the Headmaster Dippet by the tone of his voice and by his choice of words. I see Albus to his left, and I can't believe the difference fifty-nine years made. If there was any need for evidence to prove that I had time travelled, it was this.

Albus Dumbledore was tall and thin, with auburn and grey hair twirled into a ponytail at the back of his head. His usual beard was silver and was so long that it could be tucked into his belt. His nose, crooked as if it had been broken at least twice, was wrinkled in confusion and his eyes, a brilliant, soul-piercing shade of blue, were also confused at seeing a strange student he'd never seen before in his life.

I sigh, raising my head to look at the ceiling as if asking some other force to give me patience.

"My name is Valentine Dumbledore," I state again in a harsh tone, turning to look Albus in the eye.

The name has Professor Dumbledore tilting his head deep in thought. No ounce of recognition stems in his eyes, making my heart drop. "Are we related by any chance?" He asks me, and I rack my brain for a lie that made sense.

"I am your cousin," I state, making his eyes widen. I send a silent thanks to Ronald Weasley for being such an avid Dumbledore fan. "My mother was your late aunt Honoria," I say in a dull tone, and he gapes at me.

"You look nothing like her." He states, making me raise a brow.

"It takes two to tango professor," I say in a snide tone.

I was honestly enraged at him for him doing something that was 59 years into the future. He stared at me, thoughtfully and stares at my robes.

"Why are you wearing Slytherin robes?" He asks, and I curse myself.

"I stole them to fit in and not have anyone ask any questions." I think quickly. "I wanted to meet my cousin," I add swiftly. He looks even more suspicious.

"Why didn't you send an owl?" He asks, and I shrug.

"Didn't have the money to get one." I lie quickly again.

"My aunt's been dead for two years now. Why come visit me now?" He asks, and I sigh.

"Is this an interrogation?" I ask and rest deeper into my comforters. "I almost fainted a couple of minutes ago," I whine, making my voice weak. His eyes light up in alarm.

"Horace? Why is she faint?" Albus asks Slughorn and the professor shrugs.

"She was asking all these random questions. She asked about a Severus Snape and said he was the Slytherin Head instead of me, which is preposterous!" He rages in a hurt tone.

"I'd never seen her in my life and was instantly curious, considering she was supposed to be in my house." He huffs.

"She asked for the year too. She might be a bit..." He stops his loud whispering to make the crazy motion with his index finger, pointing it at his forehead.

"Loony." He finishes in a louder whisper, and I grit my teeth.

"While your utter disregard for others is quite impressive professor. I can assure you my hearing and sight are not impaired, and I could see and hear everything. While it may be true I was asking delirious questions, might I point out the massive elephant in the room? Yes? Why, thank you. I was suffering from hypoglycemia which, if you don't know, is when the body's glucose storage runs out. And when that occurs, DEAR PROFESSOR, the brain starts to make ketone bodies to supply my brain instead of glucose, which is its prime food source. So I sincerely apologize if my heath caused you any discomfort." I announce in an angry haughty tone.

Slughorn was agape, his eyes swirling with anger and annoyance. He was sputtering, trying to save his image in front of his boss. Dumbledore was fighting to hide a smile, and Dippet himself looked highly amused.

"Well, girl, you must be a witch; otherwise, you wouldn't have been able to get in Hogwarts," Dippet tells me, and I nod, taking out my wand from its place in my wild mane of hair. Dumbledore was staring at the spot on my head where I'd removed my wand with a strange look on his face.

"Yes, I'm a witch," I say, making him nod.

"You can stay here until your health recovers, but the final consensus comes down to Albus. We'll let you and your um....cousin talk. Horace, if you will be to kind as to accompany me?" He asks Slughorn, leaving no room for argument as he literally seems to float away with the vast amount of grace he had.

"Valentine?" Albus asks when it was just us two left in the Infirmary. The healers had even gone as well, giving us some privacy, and there were no patients here except for me.

I raise my chin to meet his gaze, searching for any recognition in there.

"I don't even know how you expected me to do this." I murmur, realizing I was talking to future Dumbledore and not this one.

"Pardon?" He asks, and I sigh.

"Look here, Professor. Have you heard of time travel?" I ask. His eyebrows get hidden in his hairline in shock.

"That's potent magic, Ms. Valentine." He tells me, and I raise my own eyebrow at him.

"Oh, that's precious coming from you," I mutter.

"What is that supposed to mean?" He demands, in an insulted tone.

"I don't want to talk about it here. Anyone could be listening in." I say, and Albus raises his wand. 

"No one is now." He says and surrounds us in a bubble of blue magic.

"I always loved it when you performed this spell. So cool." I grin.

"Past tense, I see?" He asks, and I nod.

"You were- I mean, you will be my headmaster in 1991. You teach all my friends and me." I state, and he seems to understand what I was trying to say. His eyes light up as if he'd connected the dots to some intricate puzzle.

"You're from the future."


	3. Eyes of Black

"You're from the future."

The words made everything so so real, and I cover my face with a groan.

"You sent me here! You told me to fix the wrong that had happened! You wanted me to kill someone!" I demand, tears whelming in my eyes.

"You called me Valentine Dumbledore before you shoved me off and sent me back in time! I didn't even KNOW that this is where you were sending me!" I snap, taking all my anger on the clueless Dumbledore in front of me.

"A war, you say?" He asks me, and I sneer.

"The man who is responsible for all this is supposedly at this school!!" I snap. "He killed my parents! And my best friends' parents scarring them for life. I'm just a kid! Why did you put all this responsibility on my shoulders!!" I demand, and the professor looks thoughtful.

"Why, indeed?" He asks, and I roll my eyes, plopping down onto the hospital bed once again.

"You probably have something special about you. Something that sets you apart from all the students I taught....um will teach." He corrects himself with a confused purse of his lips.

"Yes," I say in a defeated tone.

"Yes, what?" He asks.

"Yes, I'm different," I say like I'd just eaten something sour, with a huff. "I am Helga Hufflepuff's great, great, great,... something granddaughter," I mutter, not telling him the other part. I didn't even tell the future Dumbledore until he'd found out by catching me.

"Pardon?" He asks, and I sigh, preparing myself to repeat what I'd just said. "I'm-"

"No, I heard you, Ms.-" He stops and looks at me, "Ms.Smith?" He asks, and I stick my tongue out at the vile name.

"NO!" I demand eyes narrowed. "Evans," I state in a calm tone. "Those Smiths give Helga's descendants an awful reputation," I whine, becoming extremely defensive over my heritage.

"I've never heard of an Evans family before in the wizard and witch records?" He asks, and I shrug.

"My great-great grandmama married a muggle, and my parents were squibs who thought they were muggles. The magic gene passed on to me and my older sister Lily. My other sister didn't get it." I say softly, and he glances at me as if I was the most interesting thing he'd ever witnessed in his life.

"So, you know the future?" He breathes, sitting down as he realized the impact of the situation at hand here.

"Yes, sir." I muse, and he looks at me dead in the eye.

"Who is it you must kill?" He asks. I meet his eyes.

"I think you know, professor," I state calmly.

He has a pained look on his face. "He kills millions and starts a war?" He asks quietly, and I nod.

"Two wars actually. I left before the second could start." I muse thoughtfully. "Dumbledore sent me... Well, you sent me back in time to try to prevent both wars." I provide him with a summary. He falls silent at the revelation.

"Tom Riddle." He says in a tone that said he knew he was right.

I don't move to acknowledge that he was correct, but he knew when he met my eyes. He knew he was right.

"What year were you in?" He asks me.

"Third," I say, and he sighs.

"Thirteen. I sent a thirteen-year-old child to kill another child. " He mutters to himself.

"You believe me?" I demand, and he looks at me, nodding.

"Yes, of course. Your robes were a source of confusion for me. They looked like Hogwarts robes but are different. I guess them being from the future makes sense." He mutters, and I raise a brow.

I was telling him the fate of the world was at stake, and he was worried about my damn robes.

"So, what are we going to do?" I ask, and he looks at me with a smile.

"Well, cousin. You are going to become Valentine Dumbledore. I will have real live birth certificates made and register you in the school. I do believe you have to be sorted again for the school to reregister you in its system, but we can do that quietly. Since you've decided to become a Dumbledore, you will be both my responsibility and my brothers, whom I'll introduce to you later. I'll get anything you need and all the books you'll require for this year. Your tuition will be taken care of, as well." He says in a soothing voice, and I realize just how much more carefree and happier this Dumbledore was in comparison to the one I'd come to grow up with.

"I'll be fine for expenses," I state. "My great-great great-grandma should have a Gringotts bank account that I can access. I have the key in my bag." I muse, and he shakes his head.

"Not necessary. I made you come back into a time that wasn't even yours. The least I can do is pay your tuition, my child." He tells me, making me purse my lips, but I nod along.

I was still excessively annoyed to leave my friends, Harry and Ettie as well. My niece and nephew were the only family members I had left and the closest connection I had to my sister. They were ripped away from me by the single command of the man in front of me.

"Come along. The Sorting Hat and Headmaster Dippet await. You should be about caught up with your studies, I assume. Hopefully, you wouldn't have missed out on much." He asks, as he drops the enchantment around us and hands me my backpack from the floor.

I put my feet on the floor and feel the world spin for only a second before it steadies, and I'm perfectly fine again. That instant glucose sure worked its magic. "No. I should be ahead. It was spring before." I say mindlessly as we walk through the familiar corridors.

Class had ended, and I was aware of all the stares I was getting. I ignore them all. The words of strangers were droplets of rain that landed on me and fell right off.

"That's a bonus, at least." The professor manages to smile with a mischievous gleam in his blue eyes. I walk through the halls of the school only to stop short when my eyes meet the single pair of eyes I never wished ever to see again.

Tom Marvolo Riddle stood in the center of a group of Slytherins.

My chin tilted up in defiance, and I met his eyes head-on, stopping in my tracks to turn and glare at him full on.

He titled his head to the side in confusion at my blatant hate for him.

The Chamber of Secrets did him no justice as Tom was so much more tall and handsome then I'd remembered. With pale skin, jet black hair, and stunning dark eyes, it was no wonder why he had every girl and guy at this school wrapped under his finger.

The difference between them and me was that I could see first hand the darkness that swirled in the abyss of his dark orbs. I could recognize it because the same darkness swam in my own eyes.

I could hear Dumbledore call my name, and I see Tom look over at Dumbledore with another intrigued look.

I kept glaring at the rotten asshole that killed my parents. Tom looks back to see that I was still glaring at him. My hands were clenched at my sides, and it took everything in me to not go all samurai demon on his ass.

"Ms. Dumbledore?" Albus asks me, and I see the shock register in Tom's eyes at my new surname.

It wasn't just him. All the students seemed to quiet down to watch my newly acquired cousin and me.

I let my mouth curve up into a slow smirk, letting the dark magic infested in my soul come up to shimmer in my eyes.

Lord Voldemort looked shocked, his eyebrows raising up and into the thick mane of black hair he had.

I pull my black magic back, and I whip around, eyes hard and hair swinging to the side with my movements.

"Let's go, cousin." I muse, and I could hear the gasps all around us. Professor Dumbledore gives me a pointed look, and I give him my own.

"After you, professor." I quip. He sighs, leading me away from all the students staring at me like I was some sort of unicorn.

"You had to do that?" He asks me, annoyed, and rage engulfs me.

"Excuse me for not being polite to the guy that murdered my parents and sister." I snap in a harsh whisper.

He doesn't have anything to say after that... neither did I.


	4. Voices in My Head

I was in Headmaster Dippet's office after Albus had whispered the password to head up into what I knew to be his own office. I was shocked. This was the place myself, and my sister's kids would go to all the time for closure or just to yell at the old bastard that Dumbledore had become around 60 years in the future. I decided to round up the 59.

He'd even caused the death of his own daughter indirectly.

I gaze up the office I was in, looking at it in strange apprehension.

I half expected Fawkes to show up and land on my shoulder. I missed that bird, I think, with another heavy sigh.

"Ms. Dumbledore?" Headmaster Dippet asks, and I stare at the older man in front of me, eyes searching his.

"Yes?" I muse, and he gestures to the stool.

"Have a seat so that the Sorting Hat can do its magic." He says, and I look at the familiar hat now so much less worn out and wrinkled.

My lips curve up in an involuntary smile, and I find myself being watched by both Headmasters.

I knew what house I'd be sorted into.

I was a Slytherin at heart.

All the dark magic I could control made me a shoo-in. During my first year, the sorting hat was resolutely deciding towards Hufflepuff but ended up going for Slytherin for some reason. I knew now why that was.

Dippet places the hat gingerly on my head, and I close my eyes, waiting for the Sorting Hat's voice to fill my head.

"Valentine Evans." It's voice crows, and I smile again.

"Hello, Sorting Hat." I think, and he searches through my memories, trying to get a glimpse of my character.

"All qualities of all the houses I see." He says, and I feel my brow crease in confusion. "You've done this before I see. Well, hello again." He chuckles, and I nod.

"Good to see you again." I tell him.

"You've grown up into the bright young witch I knew you'd be." The Sorting Hat says in almost a fatherly tone.

"You've gotten younger." I tease the hat making it chuckle.

"Time travel is a fickle thing, isn't it." He says, sighing. "I apologize that this burden has fallen onto your shoulders, young one." He tells me, and I shrug.

"Someone has to do it," I say in a solemn tone.

"I assume you want to go back into your original house?" He asks me, but I take a second to think about it.

"Put me in the house where I'll be able to make the most difference," I state, and I feel the agreement he thinks while listening to my words.

"Well. Slytherin would make the most sense if you tend to kill the young man. But I think considering your newly acquired heritage that where I will put you will make the most difference in both you and young Tom Riddle's lives." He murmurs suspiciously, and I raise a brow in confusion at his words.

"HUFFLEPUFF!" He roars, and I smile in silent satisfaction at being in the house of my great grandmama.

Dippet moves to remove the hat from my head, but before he does, I hear a silent whisper. "Good luck Ms. Evans. May the goodness in your heart save those captured in the darkness." He murmurs.

"The fate of the wizarding world falls on your shoulders." I hear just as the hat is removed off my head.

Although my heart stops at his words, I nod.

"Hufflepuff?" Dumbledore asks me and I shrug.

"Not strange," I tell him, and he looks at me once before waving his wand and allowing my robes to change from the magnificent green I once adored to the pure, sunshine yellow that reminded me so much of my grandmama.

I notice that the robes were also changed to the older version of Hogwarts robes and not my newer ones.

"I will see that her tuition is covered in full as well as any textbooks she will need," Dumbledore tells the Headmaster and Dippet nods, giving me a warm smile. I smile back at the wizard, realizing I needed to get in his good graces.

"Thank you for accepting me into the school so late Headmaster. And Apologies for the intrusion." I say a sheepish look on my face.

"Nonsense, my child, any family of Albus, is family of mine. If you ever need anything...anything at all, let me know." He says, his smile crinkling his eyes at the corners.

"Thank you." I grin, and Albus says farewell to Dippet before leading me out of his office.

"Hufflepuff?" He asks again, but I shrug.

"Remember my heritage?" I muse, and his eyes widen in realization.

"Well, you were in Slytherin before." He tells me, making me shrug.

"I told the Sorting Hat to put me where I would help the most... And it did." I muse, making Dumbledore nod slowly deep in thought.

"Alright, your textbooks." He gives me a look.

"Come on child, follow me. After I'll take you to meet your other cousin... my brother." He muses, and I raise a brow.

"We aren't telling him?" I say, and he shakes his head.

"No. Let him believe you're his true cousin. It'll do him a lot more good than you think." He mutters the last part, making me shrug.

"Alright." I agree. I did have a shortage of family members at the moment. It'd be nice to have an actual family member that wouldn't be ripped away from me again.

He looks at me, gesturing me to follow him, and then we make our way to his office. There was a Ravenclaw waiting for him. She sat crisscrossed on the floor, reading in her Transfiguration textbook.

"Ms. Lovegood?" He asks in a bright tone. The girl jumps in a scare, whipping her head up to look at the both of us.

The name has me looking at her in confusion. She looked so much like the Luna I knew and loved. Her white-blonde hair fell in heaps around her like thick ropes extending way past her waist. She had brown eyes full of mirth and intelligence.

Her facial features were a mixture of Luna's and someone else I didn't know. I recognized the smile, though... I always would. It was the same smile that my best friend used to give me every time she saw me.

"Hello, Professor. I just had some questions regarding the homework you assigned yesterday." She tells him, and he gives her a kind smile. Her eyes fall to mine, and she looks intrigued, her wide brown eyes moving between myself and my cousin.

"I understand if you are busy at the moment. I can come back another time." She tells me. Dumbledore looks hesitant.

"How many questions are there?" He asks and the Ravenclaw beams.

"Oh, only two! I promise!" She adds at the end, making Dumbledore smile in amusement.

"Alright, come on in. I think Valentine can spare a few minutes." He looks at me, imploring, and I nod with a small smile. I wasn't going anywhere, anytime soon.

The girl grins. "Thank you!" She thanks the pair of us, pleased, and then we enter Albus's office. She proceeds to plop down on one of the chairs in his grand office.

I look around, realizing that this was Professor McGonagall's office. My lips turn up into a smile at the pleasant thought. I adored my old Transfiguration professor. She had been my mentor and a role model I looked up to.

I take a seat on one of the couches in the corner. McGonagall had really changed the decor in the room.

It was completely different then Dumbledore's preferences.

He had a huge bowl filled with all the tastiest candies and sweets from Honeydukes.

I lean over and swipe one of them only to see the Ravenclaw and Albus staring at me in amusement.

"I need my glucose!" I whine, trying to defend my actions.

They turn away, and I realize they were discussing homework questions I've completed months before. I understood and knew the answer to every single one of her questions before Dumbledore had to chance to explain it.

I feel a longing warmth in me, wishing for my old home.

But I was home.

The only problem was that my home was filled with strangers I didn't know and that in itself made my home, not a home at all.


	5. Hog's Head Inn

The Ravenclaw left around half an hour later.

"My books?" I ask the Professor, and he nods, making an aha movement. he slides over to his shelf and picks up a Transfiguration book from there.

"You'll have to ask the rest of your professors for copies of the textbook they are currently using." He tells me and hands me the slightly old copy of the Transfiguration textbook I already had memorized years in the future.

I take it with a slight grimace and open my backpack to shove the textbook beside the other two books I had in there.

"What are those?" Dumbledore asks me, curious. I shut my backpack slowly, so I didn't draw any more attention to them.

"Just some notebooks from the future." I muse, and he nods content with my answer.

"Well, do you want to meet my brother. Classes are over for the day, and you start school tomorrow." He offers and I nod, swinging my backpack on my back.

"Sure. Sounds good." I muse, and he nods.

"Follow me then. We will need to apparate to Hogsmeade." He tells me, and I realize that since he wasn't headmaster anymore, he could no longer apparate in and out of the castle grounds. I stay silent, not commenting on the matter. I stop in my place, however, staring at Dumbledore gaping.

"Wait! It's almost 1940, right?" I demand and Dumbledore nods.

"Yes, well, it will be in a month." He says.

"Grindlewald is still at large," I state, and my words make Albus cringe.

"Yes." He admits, making me groan.

"Great, I have to deal with two dark wizards now." I snap, and Albus shakes his head.

"No. Grindlewald is my responsibility, not yours." He says in a tone that meant the conversation was not up for debate. Too bad bud, I was debating until I got my damn answers.

"Cause that worked so well in the past. You loved him." I state deadpanned telling it as I saw it. The wizard pales, and I raise a brow at his blatant silence.

"How did you know that?" He asks in a tone higher than a whisper. I roll my eyes and point at myself.

"I'm from the future," I tell the wizard, making him rub his forehead as if getting a massive headache.

I look at him pointedly. "I'm not the one that wanted to go back in time, bud. That's on you." I say in a sickeningly sweet tone.

"Come along, Ms.Dumbledore. I'll take care of Gellert." He tells me, and I scoff.

"First name basis are we." I mock, causing him to glare at me.

We reach the courtyards leading out of the school, and he offers me his elbow as we exit the school. "Hold on tight Valentine." He orders and I nod, reaching out to grip his arm tightly. He grabs my hand with his other hand, making sure I was secure and then apparates without warning.

I felt my whole body being squeezed, sliced, spinned and skinned alive. I stifle a scream, but all at once, I was on my own two feet, and I was stumbling back in horror.

"Oh my god! That was AWFUL!!!" I heave, trying to control my breathing.

I point at him accusingly. "A WARNING would've been nice!" I demand, and Albus looks amused.

"Albus." A voice snarls behind us. I turn around to come face to face with a man in a light blue apron.

He was a barman and was currently glaring at Albus with such hatred; it made me flinch. He looked similar to his brother in that he had such long, stringy, wiry brown hair and such a long beard. He wore spectacles that hid a pair of piercing, brilliant blue eyes.

The tall and thin man moved around the counter, eyes not leaving Albus's.

"Brother," Albus said in a strained voice. I could see the noticeable brotherly resemblance now, but Albus's brother wore much more casual attire than Albus, causing them to carry different airs about them. Albus seemed more serious than this man who seemed more laid back.

"Who's this?" He snarls, looking at me unimpressed. "Your concubine?" He snarls.

He had a wand aimed at his throat faster than he could blink.

"Say that again; I dare you." I snarl back. He looked at me with something of newfound respect.

"Valentine. Aberforth is mad at me, not you. He was trying to anger me and insulted you in the process." Albus explains, but my lip curls unamused.

"Apologize then." I snap at Albus's brother, who grits his teeth at being ordered around like a child.

"Sincerest apologies, miss." Aberforth demands and I smirk, taking my wand back and placing it back into its place in the folds of my ponytail.

"Valentine, meet your cousin Aberforth. Aberforth, this is Valentine Dumbledore. She's aunt Hornoria's daughter." He informs his brother. I watch as Aberforth looks between Albus and me, staring at us like we were mental.

"Hornoria never had children, Albus." He tells his brother and Albus shrugs.

"Her story matches up. Hornoria never cared for family. You know this. She left her as a child in a muggle orphanage." He tells Aberforth. Aberforth's eyes soften slightly in pity.

It was true, though. My parents had died when I was a mere baby, and my sister Petunia hated witches and magic, so she'd put me in an orphanage where I lived there my whole life until Hagrid had come to get me, telling me I was special.

"You're family then?" Aberforth says a glint of hope in his tone. I felt awful lying to him, but I guess the fewer people who knew I was from the future, the better.

"Yeah," I say softly, and a soft smile extends on the man's face.

"I thought the only family I had left was this old arse." Aberforth points at Albus with a hard look. He wraps an arm around me and pulls me back into a one-sided hug. "Lovely to meet you, cousin." He smiles at me, and I smile back.

"Likewise," I beam, and he looked like he was ten years younger with a smile on his face.

"I can leave you here for a bit, but make sure you come back to school before midnight Valentine," Albus tells me, giving me a look. "You have class tomorrow, so don't stay out too late," Albus tells us, giving us both meaningful looks.

"I can look after her, Albus. I am not one to back away from responsibility." He sneers at Albus, his words having a double meaning.

Albus doesn't let his words get to him because he gives a slight nod and apparates away. I could see the hint of pain in his eyes, but he had left before I could say anything.

"What was that about?" I ask Aberforth. He looks at me with a pained smile.

"Not to worry, young one, just some bitter resentment between brothers." He tells me. I give him a smile and a pointed look.

"Seemed like much more than mere resentment," I tell him. He gives me shrug, his jaw clenched. I had the feeling that he didn't want to talk about it. He changes the subject just then.

"Put an apron on my dear. Come and help me with some orders." He tells me, handing me a matching blue apron. I put it on and smile at him.

"Okay, sounds fun. You'll have to teach me how, though." I say, and I see him nod in response.

"Just do as I tell you and serve the customers with me, dear." He replies and I do as he said. I took orders, scribbling them down on a notepad as I helped Aberforth make the drinks. Some were alcoholic, others warm and sweet.

The bar I was working at was small and extraordinarily dirty and filthy as sawdust dusted the entire table. I found myself getting rags and using water to wipe down the bar, cleaning off the dust.

Even the windows were nearly entirely opaque, and the floor all but invisible beneath the dirt. Sometime through the evening, I'd grabbed a broom in the corner and started sweeping up the grim and dirt using my wand to clean around the shop.

It looked a hundred times homier after just a bit of work. I used my wand to light up the cold fireplace in the corner and grin at the nicer looking shop.

"Thanks for helping around Val," Aberforth tells me, giving my head a fond pat.

"T'was no trouble at all. I enjoyed it, actually." I say, and he smiles at me Kindly.

"You are always welcome." He tells me, handing me a warm drink, motioning to sit with him.

"Thank you. I quite like it here." I tell him.

"How did you know you were a Dumbledore?" Aberforth asks, and I smile.

"The orphanage gave me some things my mum left me. Between them was a note that had my full name. So I knew through that." I answer, taking a timid sip of the substance Aberforth had given me.

I realize what was in it the second my taste buds touch it.

It was hot chocolate, but there was a hint of truth serum infused in it.

I silently thanked Snape for being such a strict professor. We were required to know what it tasted like in drinks by the end of second year. Discretely I spit it back into the mug, as I had it raised acting like I was taking a big sip.

I put it down, wiping my mouth with my sleeve.

"That's good hot chocolate." I lie through my teeth, and he gives me a tense smile.

"Why did you decide to seek us out now?" He asks another question. This was an interrogation. Much like Albus had done with me before.

"I was scared. I didn't have a family before now and thought I didn't need one. All they do is hurt you in the end." I say truthfully, realizing he must've had as hard of a life as I had. I didn't blame him for the truth serum at all now that I thought about it.

"I almost died last year," I state, thinking back to the basilisk I had helped Ettie and Harry kill. It'd taken a massive chunk out of my arm as I shoved Harry out of the way to save him. The poison would've killed me if it hadn't been for Fawkes.

"I figured I might as well get to know the last members of my family before I cheated death again." I give a hard laugh. Aberforth was staring at me, analyzing. He finally relaxes and gives me a soft look.

"It would've been nice to know about you before little one. My sister would've adored you." He thinks back, and I take notice of his usage of past tense.

I meet his eyes, telling him with them that I knew what he was insinuating. He looked relieved. I didn't ask him any further questions.

"What is this place called?" I ask, changing the subject.

Aberforth sighs, looking around at the half-empty tavern. "Hog's Head Inn." He replies. I give a nod.

"How utterly befitting," I say and he gives a hearty laugh causing me to laugh too.

Maybe coming to the past wasn't all bad... maybe, just maybe....I'd learn to love this timeline as much as I'd loved my future one.


	6. The Yellow Dorms

Aberforth took me back up the castle steps around half-past eleven. He sent me off into school, with a fond pat on my head like I was his pet dog or something. I didn't mind, though.

"You are always welcome at the Inn young one. Come visit soon." He tells me, and I nod with a matching smile.

"It was nice to meet you, cousin." I tease the man, and he brings me in for a hug.

"It was an honour child." He replies and then apparates back to his Inn. He'd apparated me back to the castle. I was getting better with not wanting to hurl like the last time Albus had apparated me.

Albus had been waiting for me at the steps as if he knew exactly what time I'd be back.

"Aberforth is always at least half an hour early to meetings. I figured he'd do the same in regards to bringing you back." He tells me when I'd asked. It seemed like the brothers loved each other dearly but were now utter foes.

He'd taken me to the Hufflepuff dorms with the instructions to get up bright and early so I wouldn't be late for classes, handing me my class schedule.

I knew how to get into the dorms because Albus had informed me how. The professors knew how to access all the dorms. However, I only knew how to access two of them. I was still Slytherin at heart, but I guess now I was needed more as a Hufflepuff.

I walk up to the pile of large barrels, stacked in the shadows on the right-hand side corridor.

One fabulous quality of the Hufflepuff dorms was that they were near the kitchens. I'd snuck into the kitchens and swiped a couple of cookies.

Well, not swiped because a house-elf caught me and handed them to me with a mysterious smile.

She was the most adorable house elf I'd seen.

Meeting Lucky had made me miss Dobby.

I find the second barrel from the bottom, middle of the second row and tapped on it to the rhythm of 'Helga Hufflepuff.' The doors swing open, and I smile in awe as I step through the tunnel entryway.

It was such a cozy and welcoming place that I felt myself falling in love. The common room was enormous and had earthy decor all around. It was a round room with low ceilings.

There were substantially round windows that I found myself walking towards amazed. I saw a field of snow that extended for miles. Plants hung and rested all around the room. The couches and chairs were burnished with copper touchings and plush, cozy yellow and black patterns.

This was such a difference from the Slytherin room I came to fall in love with in the future.   
I amble through the common room, just taking in the view around me. It was late in the night, and there were no students in here except me.

I sit on the couch, my eyes roaming everywhere I could. I take out my backpack and open it, finding the compass staring at me. I pick it up and run my fingers over the outside of it. I open it up, expecting to see two arrowheads staring up at me instead, I see my great grandmama's face.... Helga Hufflepuff.

I stare at her in confusion and see the image move. She was laughing, her whole lighting up in what was utter delight. Her eyes filled with love and I smile missing her.

I'd have to pay her portrait a visit tomorrow.

My grandmama was a round, plump woman with stunning red hair and blue eyes that I had inherited from her.

She points than at me and I watch as she makes a heart with her hands. I tilt my head to the side in confusion. She usually did that when she saw me or when I was leaving after one of my visits. I close the compass, deep in thought.

Taking off my necklace, I adjust the compass so that it hung off the long gold chain I usually wore. The chain had been my mum's, and I never took it off.

I tuck the necklace into my robes, and then I go back to my bag. I look through it frantically for a second and then curse — the goblet. My grandmama's goblet was still in a case under my bed in the Slytherin dorms. I curse inwardly and try to even my panicked breathing.

"Oh my god." I groan. She'd entrusted me to the goblet, and I'd left it in the future. "Great! Now, I need to find where it is in this timeline." I scowl to myself and get up, making my way to the girl dorms.

I open the doors to find most of the girls still awake. They all whirl around to stare at me in confusion.

"Who are you?" A girl who looked a couple of years older than me asks. Her eyes were a kind hazel, and her matching golden hair was in two braids that framed the sides of her face.

"I'm Valentine Dumbledore," I say, and her eyes light up.

"What? I thought you were in Slytherin." She asks, and I grin.

"Oh, no. Those were my friend's robes I'd borrowed to get into the school. The Sorting hat sorted me into Hufflepuff." I explain, and she gives a little shriek of glee.

"Yay!! Finally!! Hufflepuff has a legend!" She squeals and I blink in surprise. Legend? But Dumbledore hadn't defeated Grindelwald yet. He must've been much more powerful than I'd thought.

"I'm Liana Bones. Prefect." She beams, and I smile in realization.

"Nice to meet you!" I say, and she looks at the faces staring at us.

"Everyone!! Valentine Dumbledore... Hufflepuff!" She exclaims, making them burst into a round of applause. My heart warms when I realize they were trying to have me live the experience that all first-years got on their first day in Hogwarts.

I grin and wave at everyone. "I'll show you your bed! You must be exhausted!" She beams and leads me to a bed beside two other girls. One looked like she'd been asleep but had woken up, the other seemed to stare at me curiously.

"Anyways, I'll leave you to your unpacking! You have any questions.... let me know!" She beams, smiling as she literally skips away. I half expected to see her farting out rainbows and have birds chirping all around her.

"She's always that... happy. It's normal." The girl who'd been eyeing me curiously states.

"Oh." I give a weak chuckle. "Yeah, it seems like it." I muse, and she watches me as I simply put my backpack on the floor by my bed and look around.

"I have some extra pyjamas if you need them?" She says, and I look up to meet her gentle grey eyes.

"Oh! Thanks so much! Yes, please, if it's no trouble?" I ask tentatively.

"I wouldn't have offered otherwise." She teases and gets up to rumble through her drawers before handing me a pair of yellow pyjamas.

"Here. We seem to be the same size." She grins, and I give her a grateful look.

"Thanks so much," I say, and she shrugs.

"Anytime."

She points me to where the washrooms are, and I give her a grin before rushing over to change from my robes to the pyjamas. I wave my wand over my robes and wash them thoroughly before going over them with my wand again to dry.

I take my hair down from the high ponytail it usually is in. My long, thick, wavy black hair falls in its curls down past my waist. I loved my hair. It was my favourite thing about me, and it reminded me of my mom because she used to have the same long black hair. My tired, ocean, blue eyes stare back at me from the mirror in the washroom, making me sigh.

Lilly had inherited our dad's flaming red hair while Petunia was like mum and me.

I walk out; my wand stashed in my sleeve like most witches usually did. I put my robes in the drawer beside my bed, and I smile softly at the girl. "Thanks again. It fits perfectly!" I beam, and she beams back.

"That's good!" She says, her eyes warm and kind.

"May I know the name of my pyjama hero." I quip, and she chuckles.

"Abagail Diggory." She beams. I whip over to look at her. I was meeting all of my friend's ancestors, it seemed.

"Well, it's really nice to meet you... I'm Valentine, as you probably heard." I laugh, and she laughs with me.

"So, I guess we're bunk buddies." She points out, and I nod.

"That's a good thing," I tell her.

"Third year?" She asks, and I nod.

"Yup, unfortunately." I tease, making her flip her dirty blonde hair back with a grin.

"Oh! I think you were the one that barged into my Defense of the Dark Arts class!" She exclaims, and I cringe.

"Oh yeah... I did that." I groan, and she laughs.

"Oh my god Professor Merrythought looked so confused. She had no clue who you were!" Abagail demands and I cover my face with my hands.

"Ugh, I have her tomorrow." I groan, and she grins.

"Same! Let's compare schedules!" She demands, getting excited, and I pull out the paper that Albus had given me.

"Oh! Oh! We have five classes together." She demands, grinning, and I smile back.

"It'll be nice to know someone in those classes," I state, and she nods.

"Bloody hell, what urged you to take Arithmancy and Study of Ancient Runes as electives?" She demands, and I shrug.

"Overachiever alert," I say, pointing at myself, and she shakes her head amused.

"Yeah, a lot of people here are." She says, almost bitter, and I raise a brow.

"Some resentment there, I see," I tell her, and she shrugs.

"I'm taking Divination and Muggle Studies. Not as difficult." She pipes and I grin.

"Arithmancy is actually really interesting, you know." I tease, making her stick out her tongue in dislike.

"NO, thank you!" She demands, making me grin in amusement.

"We have History of Magic together first thing in the morning tomorrow," Abagail tells me and gets comfy in her own bed.

"I'll make sure to wake you up so we can get a good breakfast." She says kindly and I grin.

"Ugh Thank you. You're a lifesaver." I tell her, and she beams.

"Anytime!" She says. I find myself tucking myself into the familiar bed sheets I've come to know and love over the past three years of my life.

I lean over to turn off the lamp beside my bed. Abagail does the same shooting me smile.

I fall into my bed and bring the covers up to my chin, waiting for the cool covers to heat up my already cold body.

Although the dorms were different, the beds in Hogwarts were all the same. I found myself feeling safe and sound as I lay under the blanket of safety.

Before I knew it, my eyes were shut closed, and I fell into the most profound slumber I'd ever been in.


	7. Meeting the Ancestors

I wake up the next morning to someone shaking me awake. "VAL!!!" I hear, and I wake up groggy.

"Abigail! What time is it!" I groan, but Abigail slams a pillow in my face.

"Valentine, we need breakfast! It's the most important meal of the day!!" She demands, and I sit up to give her a deadpanned look.

"Seriously?!" I demand, and she shrugs.

"It's true." She squeals and I groan again, stuffing my head in the pillow again.

"Val, I swear to god! I need to introduce you to everyone!!" She whines, and I groan.

"Fine! Fine!" I demand still wanting to sleep some more. I get up and change into my robes, pulling my hair into my usual ponytail, letting a couple of bangs frame my face. My wand is placed nicely into my ponytail.

"Yay!" Abigail squeals and links her hand in mine. "To the food!" She shrieks. I smile at her goodheartedly.

We walk to the Great Hall, and my eyes sweep the tables.

I half expected to see Harry and Ettie leap up at me from the Gryffindor table.

But they didn't.

No one did.

Luna wasn't sitting at the Slytherin table perched with Ginny waiting for me. Neville wasn't waving at me frantically from beside Fred and George's sides. Percy wasn't scowling at everything and everyone.

I felt a shake on my sleeve, and I look up to see Abigail looking at me in concern. "Are you alright? You look ready to cry?" She asks, and I shake my head, taking those thoughts and memories away.

"I'm fine," I say and smile at my new friend. "Absolutely fine." I grin, and I follow her to the Hufflepuff table.

I notice everyone who was awake was staring at us... more specifically at me.

"Why is everyone staring at me?" I hiss. Abigail looks up from her massive plate of food. Well, I guess I now knew where Cedric inherited his huge appetite from.

"Oh. It's the first time we've had a transfer. You're an oddity. Plus, everyone knows you're a Dumbledore." She adds and then points at me with a carrot.

My eyes widen, and my lips spread into an amused smile at the non-threatening object in her hand. "How are you two related exactly?" She asks, and I shove some pancakes in my mouth. Swallowing hard, I look at her.

"Cousins," I answer and stand to grab the syrup a couple of feet away.

I douse my whole plate of pancakes in syrup till it was like a soup. "That is disgusting," Abigail tells me, making me stick my tongue out at her.

"Well, no one is mocking your huge plate of everything." I tease back, and she crinkles her nose at me in distaste.

Someone plops down beside me, and both Abigail and I look up to see the Ravenclaw that had been in Albus's office yesterday asking about the Transfiguration homework. It was the girl that looked so much like Luna.

"Pandora?" Abigail asks, and I gape. This was Luna's great-great-grandmother. Her mother was named after the girl that stood in front of me right now.

"Hello, Abigail." The girl replies, eyeing the oatmeal that had appeared in front of her hungrily.

"How many times have I told you just to call me Abby." She mumbles, and I look at Pandora with a confused look.

"Oh, hello, Valentine Dumbledore. I am Pandora Lovegood. Everyone just calls me Pan. You may do so as well." She says. Her tone and posture were extraordinarily proper, and I realize how much she even sounded like her great-great-granddaughter.

"Pleasure," I tell her. She grins at me, white teeth sparkling.

"Charmed." She replies, making me smile back at the witty Ravenclaw.

"Val is a Hufflepuff! She's my friend! You can't steal her away to be part of your so-called genius gang." Abby demands in a sarcastic tone looking pouty, and Pan lets out a prim laugh.

"Oh, don't be silly, dear." I realized she had a much heavier British accent than us. "I just wanted to get to know the girl. Is there a fault in that?" She asks, eyes wide and mischievous. "I heard you are taking Arithmancy and The Study of Ancient Runes?!" She demands in excitement. I almost choke on my pancake soup.

Abby sighs in regret. "Here we go." She mutters.

I look between the two girls in confusion, as I pounded my chest. Abby hands me a glass of water, and I gulp it down.

"Thank you." I wheeze grateful, making her send me a forced smile. "Am I missing something here?" I ask, pointing between the two girls and they glare at each other before both of them look at me with forced smiles.

"No, but of course not. Nothing is the matter, dear. I was just engaging in some friendly conversation." Pandora tells me, nibbling on her oatmeal like one of those princesses on muggle televisions.

"Nope. Nothing is wrong. Pan here just has a tendency of stealing friends away." Abby looked extremely salty.

"It's no one's fault but theirs and that of the friend. They must not have been very close friends in the first place." She defends in a tight tone.

I shake my head in bewilderment. "Um, alright. How do you know my schedule?" I ask Pan, and she grins up at me.

"I know everyone's schedule. I am the Headmaster's assistant." She says in a duh tone.

"More like Headmaster's pet," Abby grumbles, making Pan glare at her. Blue and gray clash into a glaring match and I'm caught in the middle.

"Okay, so you made my schedule?" I ask, and she nods.

"Precisely." She grins.

"Pan! Abby! Stop harassing the girl." A guy demands and a Gryffindor lands in the spot to Abby's left. Wow, all we needed was a Slytherin, and it'd be just like old times.... er future times.

"Hello, Claude." The two of them chimed. I look between the three in amusement. Claude had warm hazel eyes and a dozen freckles that took his cheeks hostage. His red hair was flicked to one side, and his eyes glinted with mischievousness.

"You, my darling, must be the infamous Valentine Dumbledore the whole school can't shut up about." He grins at me, and his smile makes me send him one of my own smiles back. "Claude Zabini at your service, madam." He says in a posh voice, mimicking Pan. He gets a glare in return, making Abby grin at the action.

The Zabini name was usually associated with Slytherins, but I couldn't judge considering my heritage and the fact that I'd been in Slytherin myself.

"The one and only," I reply to Claude, making him grin at me. He was nothing like the arrogant Blaise that I'd punched in the face second year.

The thought makes a smile spread on my face.

"You've been everything anyone could talk about ever since you stared down Tom Riddle. I was there. You looked ready to duel the man right then and there." Claude laughs out, not noticing how my hold on my fork had tightened at the mention of the murderous villain.

"You did what?!" Abby shrieks, laughing in glee.

"Oh, you just keep getting better and better." She chortles, and I point my fork in her direction.

"Always here for your vast entertainment Abs." I grin, and she smiles back.

"Did he do something to harm you?" Pan asks me, concerned, and I purse my lips.

"Not me. Just someone I love." I admit being as vague as I could. He does try to kill me two times in the future, kills my sister and parents and leaves my niece and nephew parentless.

I stab the pancake on my plate, stuffing the delicious sweet treat into my mouth. "Well, I myself would've loved to have seen that." Abby sighs and Claude nods in delight.

"It was wicked." He agrees. I smile at the enthusiastic guy.

"Well, I guess it would've made a good essay topic." Pan agrees and then Claude scoffs.

"Speak of the devil, and he shall appear." All four of us whirl our heads to stare at the incoming Tom Riddle and his gang of Slytherins.

It wasn't just myself who had whirled around to stare at the handsome male specimen that had walked in. Every girl in the hallway had her eyes trained the unsuspecting Slytherin.

Lord Voldemort.

That kid grew into the man that killed my parents. My mom. My dad. My sister. My brother-in-law. He'd scarred Ettie and Harry. He killed Adele's parents as well. He caused the death of Dumbledore's own daughter...not that I was ever going to tell my cousin that he had a one night stand with a random witch, getting her pregnant.

I scoff, looking back at my pancakes. The thought of telling Dumbledore he was a literal man-whore made me lose my appetite, and I wrinkle my nose in disgust.

"Whatever is the matter, Val? Have you lost your appetite?" Pan asks me, and I smile at her.

"Val? I wanna call you Val? Can I call you Val? Please?!" Claude asks me, and I grin at him.

"Of course, you can, Claude," I say in amusement.

"Ha! I can call Valentine Val." He chortles. I had the urge to pinch his cheeks like some great aunt. The thought makes me miss Harry and Ettie even more.

"Nothing, just the thought of catching my cousin in bed with another woman, sprung into my head, and I lost it," I admit and Abby looks horrified.

"Your cousin Professor Dumbledore?!" She squeaks, going red, and I nod, trying hard not to laugh.

All three wore utterly terrified expressions, and they all drop their culinary at the same time, making a loud clang. I burst out laughing at their expressions.

"Hilarious Val." Claude shivers in disgust.

"I do believe this is what people call traumatized." Pan declares, looking like she smelt something utterly horrid.

Abby's face was just frozen into one of pure horror.

"Oh, that was priceless. I should've snapped a picture of all your expressions." I tell them, making them all glare at me.

"What?! Oh, come on! That was funny! I can't just be the only one that gets traumatized. I need to share it. Sharing is caring!" I defend my actions and Claude gives my hand a pat.

"Not in this case, love." He shivers again, and I laugh.

I turn my head up, grinning in amusement with my new friends only to catch the eye of Tom Riddle.

He'd been staring at me, I realized. My smile drops slowly, and I raise an eyebrow at the handsome lad.

His stunning black orbs clash with my own sky blue ones.He keeps staring, searching my eyes for something. I realize he was searching for any ounce of black magic in me.

I let a sly smirk spread on my face and give him a mocking wink.


	8. Bombarda My Arse

I had History of Magic with Abby and Claude first. Abby calls sitting beside me in class and Claude pouts, mad at being left out.

He sits in front of us, turning back to glare at us every five seconds. A Gryffindor boy with bright blonde hair plops down beside Claude, and they both whirl around wearing goofy smiles.

Abby and I share a confused look.

"Claude, you alright?" Abby asks, and Claude stands up, pointing at the guy beside him.

"Ha, now it's two against two!" He demands, and my eyebrows raise while a smile of amusement crosses my lips.

"Claude, sweets. It was never a competition. One of us can sit with you, next class." I tell him and Abby points at the blonde fellow.

"Why'd you have to get Christopher involved as well." She demands, and Christopher scowls at her.

"It's Chris, Abigail." He sneers, and Abby looked ready to hex the living daylights out of the blonde. Chris looked like he knew exactly how to get under Abby's nerves as his green eyes lit up in mirth.

"Chris Killick, pleased to make your acquaintance, my lady." He moves to shake my hand, and I send him a smile.

"Valentine Dumbledore," I say, almost messing up and saying Evans.

"I know." He grins at me, and Abby leans over to flick his forehead after a second.

"You look scary. Stop!" She hisses, making me and Claude snort in amusement.

"Funny." He glares at the witch beside me. She reminded me so much of Cedric at that moment that it hurt.

I could feel most of the class's eyes on us and sigh. "Do they always stare like this?" I ask, making Abby shrugs.

"They've never stared at me before. It's usually at Pan and her stupid genius gang thing or Tom Riddle, and now we can add you to the mix." She chimes and I raise a brow at her unimpressed.

"Come on. I'll try to make it as painless as possible." She grins at me, and I sigh.

"Thanks, Abby," I say.

"Us too!" Claude chimes in and I send a smile their way as well. 

"Thanks, guys." I muse and then in walks a very much alive Professor Binn.

"Oh my god." I breathe, gaping at the professor who had taught my friends and me as a ghost years into the future. The man in front of me was actually a young version of Binn, and I couldn't stop gaping in utter shock.

The Professor in front of me had luscious brown locks that fell onto his huge rimmed glasses that held two brown eyes captive. He was still short... the same height he'd been as a ghost, but the only difference was that he couldn't exactly fly around class anymore.

He used to be an ancient and shrivelled ghost and now he was a breathing young teacher that actually smiled at his students. "Whoa. That's something." I muse and hop off my chair to speak to him before class began.

"Professor Binn?" I ask, and he looks up to take note of me in confusion before his eyes light up in recognition.

"Ah, you are Albus's cousin. The new student!" He chimes in the dry, reedy voice I knew by heart. He moves to adjust his huge, thick glasses to take a better look at me. "You have the same eyes." He takes note. I found that surprising, considering we weren't even related at all.

"Thank you, professor," I say kindly, and he moves to grab something in his drawer, holding it out to me.

"Here, you are deary." He puts the exact same version of A History of Magic in my palms. I stare at it with a soft smile on lips, never thinking I'd be so happy as to have this book in my hands again. Its familiarity soothed me in a way.

"Thank you. I really appreciate it." I tell him with a smile. He grins up at me.

"Anytime my child. You ever need anything... Let me know!" He says excited, and I grin back.

"I will," I say. He ushers me back to my chair.

"Professor Binns actually likes you." Abby looks at me in shock, and I shrug, smiling mysteriously, looking at the book in my hands.

"Where are we?" I ask Abby, who shrugs.

"I don't pay attention in this class." She looks sheepish. I glare at her.

"Well, you better start," I tell her, making her groan. "Don't you groan at me, missy. You pay so much money for this education! Take advantage of it." I demand, and she winces.

"You sound like my mum." She cringes.

"Maybe there's a reason for that," I tell her, and she sighs.

"Fine." She grumbles. Claude turns around to flip my book open to the right page.

"Thank you." I breathe, making him give me a sly smirk in return.

Professor Binn then proceeds to start class up, and I find myself already knowing everything going on in class. I took notes, though, for the sake of remembering it better on my next test. I was so not getting a damn 97% on my next History of Magic test again. It was either I get a hundred, or I make Binn into a ghost myself.

The day continued the same way. I had all my classes with Abby today. Three were with Claude, and one was with Pan who had taken it upon herself to introduce me to a couple of her Ravenclaw friends. The genius gang, as Abby so loved to call it.

Pan would've adored Hermione and my niece.

The thought sends a pang of sadness in my heart.

I'd had Charms and a double block of Defense against the dark arts with Professor Merrythought. She was more than happy to give me a warm welcome into her class. I'd confused the hell out of her apparently.

She was extremely nice, and I found myself comparing her to Professor Lupin. They both had the same teaching methods, which made me feel way better throughout the day.

Dinner came along faster than I expected. I found myself eating with the same group I people I'd had lunch with. Pan, Claude, Chris, Abby and I sat around the table eating a hearty dinner. I had piled my plate up high with salad and mashed potatoes.

I see a Ravenclaw girl come over shyly. We were seated at the Hufflepuff table, so a source of shyness was understandable.

"Greta! Come join us!" Pan grins at her shy friend and I watch as the girl comes and plops in the seat to the right of Pan as I was seated to her left. Abby sat in front of me, Chris and Claude both flanking her.

Greta smiles at everyone, giving a slight wave. "Hello." She says, and Pan greets her warmly.

"Val, darling! This is Greta Ollivander. She and her brother are the children of the great Ollivander himself." Pan introduces her to me.

My eyes widen, and I shake her outstretched hand. "Lovely to make your acquaintance." She says, and I see some similarity to the man that sold me my first wand. She had pale silvery eyes and even paler skin. Her hair was almost platinum and rivalled Luna's own hair.

"You as well," I say, after swallowing the bite in my mouth.

"Val. You need to help me with Charms. Please!! You already finished the homework in class." Abby begs me, and I smile.

I had always been really good at studying and getting the highest grades. It just came easily to me. I loved helping out my friends whenever I finished. I remember helping Neville with Potions and Charms, making me wear a nostalgic look.

"Of course. No need to ask my friend." I quip, and my words seem to make her whole body relax.

"You already completed the Charms homework?" Pan asks industriously, causing me to shrug.

"We only had a mere 10 minutes to finish all 30 questions." She demands, making me give her a sly smile.

I didn't tell her I'd spent only a total of 30 minutes the first time I'd done that homework. I had those questions memorized. I actually didn't expect them to reuse homework questions, but I guess it made sense. I hope I got lucky with the tests too. Albus would probably change em just to spite me.

"It was easy." I murmur, trying to defend myself, and she looks flabbergasted.

"You must join my club." She demands, making the entire table groan. "What?!" She demands glaring at our friends around us.

"You and your damn club." Claude scoffs, and I raise a brow.

"What's the problem with Pan's club?" I ask, taking another mouthful of mashed potatoes.

"Pan has a club in which only the greatest minds are allowed in," Abby says in a mocking tone.

"Oh," I state, and Pan huffs.

"Well, I can't have someone who got a Dreadful (D) in Potions in my club now, can I?" Pan quips and everyone cringes. Abby goes a dark red in embarrassment.

"IT was THAT ONE time!" She hisses, taking her wand out. Pan eyes the wand in mirth.

"I can best you in a duel anytime, anywhere, little Abigail." She mocks, eyes on the soup in front of her. She wasn't even giving Abby the time of day.

"Whoa, how about we just calm down a tad," Claude demands, trying to wrestle the wand out of Abby's grasp. Chris jumps back in annoyance as a goblet of cranberry juice is knocked over onto his robes.

"GUYS," He yells, green eyes blazing in anger as he takes his own wand out to dry his clothes.

"Can we please get along?" Greta begs, silver eyes glinting in sadness.

"Tell that to miss stick up her arse here!" Abby shrieks, sending a spell out of her wand. "Bombarda!!" She shrieks and Pan lets out a piercing scream of rage as she ducks, throwing herself out of harm's way.

I lunge, grabbing a shaking Greta, lurching us backwards as I use my hand to send a silent shield up. The spell hits the shield and goes flying upwards, exploding on the roof.

We both fall off of our seats and hit the ground hard.

The entirety of the Great Hall was silent, their eyes on us. Greta and I slump to the floor in relief. "Thank you." Greta trembles and I nod silently.

"Great." Pan declares from her spot a couple of feet away from us, and I look up to see that Chris and Claude had both jumped back, dragging Abby along with them.

"MS. DIGGORY!!!" I hear a roar.

We all flinch in shock.

"Great." Abby mutters, copying Pan from before.

I groan and cover my forehead with one hand, lying on my back. "Great," I repeat.


	9. Voldemort Has Moves

"IRRESPONSIBLE! PUTTING ALL THE STUDENTS HERE AT RISK!! HOW DARE YOU!!" Slughorn rages at all of us. All six of us were in the Headmaster's office.

"Professor, we did not commit any error! Abby is the lass that shot the spell!!" Pan demands, blue eyes blazing in anger at the accusation.

"How did you do that?" Claude asks me, eyes trained on the disastrous scene in front of us.

"Do what?" I say innocently.

"You used non-verbal and wandless magic." He replies in a whisper.

"Spur of the moment thing," I reply, eyes hardening as I watched Pan, Abby and Slughorn scream at each other. "Accidental magic most definitely,"

"I'm only thirteen. It's a rare thing for fully-grown wizards to accomplish nonetheless a thirteen-year-old." I say calmly, telling him the rehearsed phrase I always used whenever someone caught me using magic too powerful for someone like me.

Adele could also use wandless magic. She had known how to do it since she was young ever since Albus had travelled to tell his granddaughter precisely what she was.

"Ms. Dumbledore, Mr.Zabini, Mr. Killick and Ms. Ollivander. You four have been quiet. Would any of you mind informing me of exactly what happened during this ordeal." Headmaster Dippet questions.

The three students around me were silent, so I sigh, stepping up. "Headmaster Dippet. We were all having dinner when I believe an argument occurred regarding Ms. Diggory's previous grades. Ms.Lovegood was asking her if she required any assistance regarding the homework, considering her past failed grade in potions." I point to Slughorn, making him flush, at the jab towards his teaching skills. Abby looked ready to throttle everyone in front of her.

"I believe Ms.Diggory got too emotional regarding the sensitive topic, and her wand fired a spell because of that emotional input she had provided it. Accidental magic is highly common in overemotional children. Ourselves, we didn't think the mere argument would cause such a ruckus, and I humbly apologize for not interfering in the argument beforehand. I had never thought the situation would escalate to such an extent." I proclaim.

My friends were staring at me weirdly, but I ignored them; this was not my first time talking my friends and me out of trouble. "Mr. Zabini, Ms.Lovegood, Mr. Killick, Ms. Ollivander and myself were too busy trying to dodge the spell that had erupted from Ms.Diggory's spell. Thankfully none of us were hurt, and I do believe that the extremely foolish argument." I glare at Pan and Abby, making them cringe. "Has come to a conclusion." I tell Headmaster Dippet.

"So it would make no sense to punish one or the other. We were all involved, and hence we all need to take responsibility for our actions." I say. I hear my friends start to disagree, but Dippet stops them.

"The lot of you... Silence!" He booms, and we all fall quiet. "Thank you, Ms.Dumbledore. I do believe you are right. No harm has come to anyone, and no one was drastically hurt; hence I will turn a blind eye this time. Ms. Diggory, please be more careful next time and Ms.Lovegood no one likes a smartarse." He quips, making us all gape at him. Slughorn looked flabbergasted.

"You are all dismissed." Dippet continues, not looking up from the papers in his hands.

We all leave before he could change his mind.

"Val, that was amazing!" Chris breathes and wraps his arms around me in a bear hug.

"None of us got in trouble!" Abby looked shocked.

"Yep. Not my first time talking myself out of trouble." I wink at them, and they all looked so relieved.

"Thank you, Val," Pan tells me, cheeks still pink from the insult Dippet had thrown her way.

"No problem." I grin at them. Then we all walk silently back to the Great Hall before stopping.

"Do we really want to go back in there?" Claude asks us. As one, we all shake our heads drastically.

"Nope!" Abby shrieks, going a bright red. Her expression has me bursting out in a fit of laughter, making Greta giggle beside me. Pan and Chris then join in laughing and then Claude and Abby as well.

I would always love Neville, Luna, Harry, Ettie, Adele, Ginny, Cedric, the twins and Percy, but for now.... I felt like I'd be okay with these five by my side.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Abby and I skip up to our dorm room when I suddenly remember grandmama. "Oh! Abby! I just remembered! I need to speak to my cousin about something!" I tell her, lying quickly, and her expression softens into one of kindness.

"Yeah, of course. I'll just see you later? And we can work on Charms?" She asks, looking unsure. I nod with kind eyes.

"Of course." I beam. She exhales in relief.

"Thanks, Val.... for today. You saved my arse." She admits, and I grab her hand.

"What are friends for." I muse, making her grin.

"So... we're friends?" She asks, and I nod.

"Of course! Would I be hanging out with you if it were otherwise?" I say, making her nod.

"Valid point." She grins.

"I'll see you later then!" I wave and spin on my heel only to ram headfirst into a hard chest. I stumble back almost falling on my arse, but someone grabs my wrist hauling me upright.

"Ow!" I demand, rubbing my nose only to look up and see Tom Riddle staring down at me. His eyes were hard, and his stance rigid in annoyance.

"Watch where you step." He sneers at me, making my eyes turn to irritated slits.

"Why don't you apologize for ramming into me?!" I taunt, immensely angered at his presence.

He raises an eyebrow at me but ignores me, ultimately continuing along his route. I look around, not seeing anyone else except us, and wave my hand. Tom stops in place in an instant, superglued to the floor. I stroll towards him, my lips curving up into a smirk.

"Tom Marvolo Riddle." I muse and watch as my words have his head whipping up to stare at me in barely concealed shock. His mane of black locks follow the movement of his head, and I find my eyes following the sway of those black strands of hair.

"How do you know my middle name?!" He snarls, dark eyes getting darker, and I raise a brow.

"Ah. So I have your attention now. How quaint." I chortle, utterly disgusted by him.

"Valentine Dumbledore." He replies, voice bored but strained. "Who doesn't know the cousin of our Transfiguration professor." He says, looking away. "If you wanted attention, I'll have you know I find you utterly hideous and have no intention of ever looking at you twice. There are trolls who exceed in raw beauty." He drawls, and I blink in surprise at his words. Damn, he sure knew how to talk to girls. I sit on the rails of the stairs, staring at him silently.

How does this mere child become Lord Voldemort? "I didn't hear you say a spell, so how am I stuck here?" He asks, eyes curious.

"I didn't," I muse back, making him scoff.

"So what you did back in the Great Hall was truly non-verbal magic." He thinks out loud, and I smirk again.

"I thought you didn't want to look at me twice." I muse, making his eyes narrow on my form.

He waves a hand, silent, and he can move again. He slams his shoulder into mine, continuing his descent down the stairs. "Very mature," I tell his retreating back, hopping down from the stairs to watch him with a scowl filled with hate.

So the guy knew nonverbal and wandless magic as well. How marvellous. I scowl again and whirl around, literally marching in a fit of rage to see my grandmama.

I needed to see her smile again, even if it was just for a second.

I walk down the halls and round a corner. Her portrait was near the Hufflepuff dorms, so I didn't need to walk as far as I did when I lived in the Slytherin dorms.

I reach her portrait staring at my grandmama in adoration. Helga Hufflepuff wore a gorgeous brown and red dress that brought out the stunning shine in her matching hair. Her blue eyes so much like my own meet my own in confusion. "Hello, child. How can I help you?" She asks, and my eyes whelm in tears.

"Hi, Grandmama," I say with a watery smile. Her eyes crinkle in more confusion and the cup she was holding drops as she finally sees my face when I hold up my wand with the Lumos spell lit on it.

"Val!?" She demands, eyes widening in shock.

I thought that since I'd travelled to the past, she wouldn't have any recollection of ever meeting me.

"You remember me!?" I say with a happy cry, and she scoffs.

"As if I would forget my own grandchild. Honestly, child." She demands, making me I grin. "Why are you here?" She demands in worry, and I sigh, shaking my head.

"I can't really say." I cringe, looking around the hallways for anyone listening in. She nods, understanding alight in her eyes.

"Come, my child." She reaches out a hand, "Join me for tea, my sweet." She gives me a soft smile.

I look around, and thankfully, no one was around. Grinning back at my grandmama, I raise my wand. "Nox," I whisper, turning off the light and channelling my inner black magic to have it surround my entire body.

I reach towards the portrait my hand going straight into it.

Grandma Helga grabs my hand, pulling me into the painting, allowing the colours and paints to engulf my vision.


	10. A Founder Enraged

"I missed this place!" I beam, and my grandmama smiles at me.

"I missed having you here." She grins and gestures me in for one of her hugs.

I loved her hugs. They made me feel safe and warm and at home. She was the only true family I had contact with so I adored whenever I could come for a visit.

"Come, my child. Tell me what happened. Why are you in this timeline?" She asks, worried, and I sit down on one of her plush couches.

"Albus told me I could undo all the deaths and prevent the two wars that happen in the future. He asked me to go to the place where Tom Riddle was weakest and kill him." I admit. My grandmama's eyes narrow in anger.

"That old boggart!" She demands, and I gape.

"Grandma!" I chuckle at her in shock.

"You are but a mere child! If he wanted to reverse what had happened, why didn't the old crone go back himself!" She scowls, giving me a protective look.

"I didn't expect him to send me back in time, though. That was a surprise. I almost fainted then Professor told me I'd travelled 59 years back in time." I admit, and she asks.

"Of course, you almost did. Time travel takes a toll on one's mental health, my darling." She pours me a cup of tea, handing it to me.

I glance at the goblet in my hand, and I cringe. "I also left the goblet back in the 1990s," I admit, but Helga merely smiles.

"That goblet is an ancient relic filled with immense magic, Val. It wouldn't have accompanied you either way." She tells me. My mouth pops open.

"Oh," I say, silently causing her to give a chuckle.

"My dear child.... you know you must find it before Tom does." She tells me, and I nod.

"I know. I just need to retrace the entirety of Wizarding history, I guess." I grumble.

"Val, you know it could only be with the Smiths. My other descendants." She informs me with a grim look, and I groan.

"Why? Grandmama!" I whine, making her shrug.

"They are my descendants as much as the Evans are." She winces.

"How are my parents?" I ask her, and she gives me a gentle smile.

"As good as they were the last time you asked me, child." She says, and I relax a bit.

"Good. And my sister?" I ask, eyes wide.

"She and James are well." My grandmama tells me, making me grin in relief.

"That's one positive, at least." I breathe.

"Val... I'm worried about you." My grandmama admits, and I look up to see the worry in her stunning blue eyes. "I can't see your future anymore." She tells me. I look at her with wide eyes.

"When you were at Hogwarts, I could see you married and happy with children, caring for Ettie and Harry like your own." She tells me. "I can't see you anymore, my sweet." She chokes up. "Every time I try.... I see a pit of darkness." She admits, seeming saddened by this.

"So if I remain here... on the current path I'm on..." I stop, and she nods grimly.

"You'll die." She admits, and I nod slowly.

"Things have already begun to change in the future, my child. The other spirts and I were perplexed, but I see now that the reason is you." She says.

"What changed?" I ask.

"Anything bad?" I demand in worry, sitting on the edge of my seat.

"No... just small things love. Nothing too drastic yet." She says slowly.

"Is he a bad person as a child?" I ask my grandma, taking a sip of the tea she loved to serve her guests.

"No. Not necessarily. He hasn't done anything murderous or downright evil yet." She tells me. "He is still only thirteen years old." She reminds me.

"A powerful thirteen-year-old," I mutter bitterly.

"Hypocrite." My grandmama teases, and I blush.

"I don't grow up to kill people!"I demand, and she shrugs.

"Says the girl who went back in time with the sole purpose of killing someone." She points out. I grow silent.

Tears prickle at the back of my eyes. I set the teacup down roughly, in a fit of anger.

"He grows up to cause two wizarding wars and kills my parents. He leaves so many kids orphans! Do you want that to happen!? Do you want Harry to end up with the Dursleys? Do you want to see Neville's parents lose their minds!? They don't even recognize their own son!" I demand.

My grandmama takes off her slipper, throwing it at my head.

I shriek, ducking to the floor. "Grandma!!" I demand, and she looks furious.

"VALENTINE EVANS! Don't you DARE take that tone with me!! I would never wish that to occur!! But I also don't want my GRANDCHILD to become a killer!" She booms and I sit back down, stunned.

"I never chose this grandma. I don't want to kill someone. I didn't want to grow up in an orphanage abused and hated." I choke, tears brimming in my eyes, and her stare softens completely.

"I'm just trying to live with what cards the universe dealt me," I tell her, and she moves to sit beside me, wrapping her arms around me.

"Tom's cards are almost identical to your own sweetest." She informs me in a whisper, and I lean into her embrace.

I mull over her words in my head, realizing that she was right. Oh, she was so right.

"So, what do I do?" I ask her.

"Albus sent me here to kill him," I admit, and she scoffs.

"Screw Albus Dumbledore. That man has his head so far up his arse; he wouldn't see the truth even if it punched him in the face." My grandmama says bitterly, and I gape at her, a grin spreading on my lips.

"You just swore," I say in amazement, and she chuckles.

"I'm no angel, my darling." She bops my nose with her index finger.

"First... find my goblet. I did not give that thing to you for it to go back into the Smith's clutches." She scolds me, and I groan.

"I'm sorry!!" I demand, and she shakes her head, handing me my cup of tea, moving to get her own.

"Not your fault. It's that prim, prissy, blonde hag's fault." She mutters talking about Albus, making me almost choke into my drink.

"My goblet is your priority right now. In the hands of someone that is not my descendant... that could be dangerous." She says, talking in a tone that told me she was in one of her Seer trances.

She grabs my palm, and I realize she was trying to see my future again. It always worked better when you were touching the person you were doing a reading for, which was what my grandmama was doing. She was a very talented Seer. She had told no one of her powers, considering how much danger she knew she'd be in if she ever revealed to anyone of her powers.

Her eyes open, and she stares at me for a second, with a soft smile.

"Befriend the child, my dear." She tells me. I look at her in shock. "Befriend that person that killed my parents!?" I stand in a fury.

"SIT!" My grandma booms, and I sit down quieting instantly. I loved my grandmama, but she was frightening when angered. I pitied anyone who angered her and faced her wrath.

"I thought you were a smart witch, Valentine." Grandma Helga muses, wrapping an arm around me, pulling me back into her embrace.

"Tom hasn't killed your parents here. They haven't even been born yet." She tells me, and I shake my head.

"But he will. He will kill them, and I'll be all alone." I say bitterly.

"So don't let it come to that. That boy has been through pain too my child." She informs me, and I sigh.

"I'll think about it," I tell her after a second. She beams at me.

"That's all I ask, my sweet Val. That's all I ask."

I stayed with my grandma for another hour before I say goodbye, being lowered out of her portrait with her help. She blows me a kiss, laughing heartily before making a heart with both hands and disappearing back into the spirit land.

The scene replays in my head again and again like deja vu; I find myself freezing in surprise, rushing to grab my necklace. I clutch the compass attached to the gold chain and open it.

Instead of seeing my grandmother's laughing face again, I see the restricted section in the library. My blood freezes over and I turn the compass over... around and around in my fingers.

Could it be that this compass could tell the future.... like a Seer could... like grandmama could.

I pause in place before, closing the compass and tucking it away in my robes.

It looked like I was heading to the Restricted section tomorrow, but tonight I was helping a certain Diggory with her Charms homework.


	11. Slughorn at it Again

It was the next morning, and I had Transfiguration with Albus. I had finished the homework that Albus had scribbled down on a paper shoved in the confines of the textbook he'd given me. This time block was just exclusively for the Hufflepuffs and Abby introduces me to some other kids in our year. She'd apparently gotten over the embarrassment of last night.

Abby and I had woken up early. We'd hung out with Chris and Claude, who had been seated at the Gryffindor table. They'd waved us over, and we sat with them there this time. Pan and Greta had joined once they'd woken up.

Albus enters class eyes flitting to me before giving me a smile. He sends me a wink and then goes around collecting the homework. I hand him mine and Abby's, and he grins at us before walking away. "I can't believe he's your cousin!" Abby hisses. I look at her, amused.

"Yup. Our parents were siblings." I muse in a sarcastic voice.

Albus then proceeded to teach us the proper way to transfigure a teapot into a tortoise. I already knew this spell and had practiced it with Hermione beforehand, so I wasn't worried too much.

I read the burgundy book in my hands and take out my wand from my hair, glancing at the beautiful blue teapot in front of me. Humming slightly, I wave my wand firmly around in a circle pulling it down as I murmured the spell under my breath.

It takes a second, but the teacup spins and spins until it turns into a tortoise. I clap my hands in glee, making a delighted squeak. "Hello!!" I coo at the little turtle and take the little cutie into my palms. "You are adorable!" I squeal, petting the small animal's head.

"Magnificent Ms. Dumbledore," Albus tells me with a nod, making me grin at my professor, realizing that the whole class had been staring.

"Thank you, professor," I say, giving my cousin a nod.

"How did you do that!?" Abby demands in astonishment, looking crestfallen, and I smile at her.

"Here! I'll help you." I say. I don't think she'd ever looked more relieved.

By the end of class, we had two tortoises rolling around my quill, like it was a game of catch. "They are so cute!!" Abby exclaims, and I nod.

"Come on, little Mikey! Get the quill!! Beat Abby's tortoise!!" I cheer quietly.

"NO! Don't you dare Charlotte! You beat that, Mikey!" Abby demands, her competitive nature kicking in.

"Ms. Diggory. Ms. Dumbledore." I hear Albus call out, and we both turn around to see that the entire class had gathered around watching our competition.

"Excellent job in Transfiguration. However, I would in face appreciate it if you let your fellow classmates learn to transfigure their own teacups as well." Dumbledore tells us, amusement twinkling in his eyes. "Charlotte won by the way." He adds, and everyone turns back to stare at Abby's tortoise, holding my quill in her mouth.

"HA!" Abby cheers and picks up her tortoise, cooing loving words to it.

"Please turn your tortoises back into teapots," Albus tells us as class was ending in a couple of minutes. I take Mikey back into my hands, placing him back in the middle of the table.

"Bye, Mikey," I whisper and wave my wand in a single motion, muttering the reversal spell. Mikey turns back into the beautiful blue teapot he had been before.

Abby watches my movements and nods to herself, trying to copy me. The steps leading up to the spell were perfect; however, the execution made my eyes widen because the spell hit my teapot instead of Charlotte, and I shriek jumping back as the teapot literally exploded.

"You killed Mikey!" I gape at the broken teapot. Abby laughs, nervously.

"Sorry!!" She demands and looks at my face before we both explode in a fit of giggles.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

During the time I had in-between classes, I went to the library with Abby and Pan. We were doing our homework in silence. "You guys can't still be mad at each other... come on!" I demand after ten minutes of silence.

"I do not feel any emotions towards this female Val. She almost ended my life yesterday." Pan declares, not looking up from her Transfiguration book. I raise a brow, pursing my lips.

"Wonderful." I murmur.

"I do not feel any emotions towards that female either. She exposed my embarrassing mark in front of everyone." Abby mimics Pan's high pitch, proper voice not looking up from her own Charms book. This causes Pan to glare at her.

"Imbecile." She scowls at Pan.

"Bitch," Abby growls back, grey eyes blazing. Pan gasps at the word, and she stands up.

"Idiot!" She rages. Abby stands up to meet her in their combat of words.

"Lunatic!" She snaps.

"High prissy arse bitch!!" Abby adds, and Pan looked as if steam was exiting her ears.

"You toad!!" Pan grits out.

This was annoying the hell out me, as I sit in-between the arguing married couple. I snap my fingers, and fireworks erupt in-between them, shooting out my fingers. They shriek, moving back to keep their faces from being burnt.

I ignore them, continuing my Transfiguration homework. They gape at me. "VAL!" Abby demands, and I look up, feigning innocence.

"What?" I ask. They gesture to the scorched table in confusion.

"Oh my. How did that get there?" I ask, and at my tone, they look even more bewildered than before.

"You did not cast a spell with your wand?" Pan inquires, and I point to the wand in my hair.

"Nope," I say, and Pan and Abby share a look.

"Well, how did this happen?" Abby demands raising a hand in confusion.

"I am just as clueless as you guys." I continue with the lie because it was so amusing to see them so flustered and confused.

"But it was maybe the gods above telling you guys to shut your mouths and study so we can pass our courses." I chirp. Pan looked horrified at the thought.

"Like haunted spirits." She whispers in fear, and I nod slowly, questioning both of their intelligence at that moment.

"Yup exactly." I chuckle in amusement, eyes going back to my textbook, a smile etched on my face.

A bit later, I find myself walking towards the restricted section of the library. I knew no students were even allowed in here, but I still needed to get another book. Another book that could help me hone the black magic I had inside me.

I purse my lips and lift my hand. No one was around here. No students roamed around this part, and the restricted section was protected by so many inchantments, teachers didn't need to watch over it.

With a swift wave of my palm, my black magic comes forth and unlocks the door. I shuffle inside, locking the door behind me. Breathing steadily, my eyes flit over the thousands of books before I move towards the section I was looking for. A book cover catches my eye. It hadn't been there in the future... meaning someone had removed it.

"Funny," I whisper and walk up to grab it. Secrets of the Darkest Art, I read. I grab it in my hands, and I could feel the darkness and black magic pulsing inside the book.

I couldn't let it go.

It wouldn't let me. It was as if the magic inside me had bonded with the magic that this book held.

I skim through it and feel my face pale. This was barbarous. How could spells like this exist? WHY was this book even in a school environment. It was heavy... such a large volume. I ran my hands over the book bound in faded black leather, and I feel my lip curl in utter disgust.

I quickly transfigure it into my Charms textbook, with a wave of my hand. I stuff it into my backpack and rush forward, grabbing three other books I found intriguing.

Looking around, I lift my arms and allow for mock books to take the place of the ones I'd borrowed. They were blank books, however, and any professor who looked into it would know it'd been tampered with. Hopefully, I would've returned them before then.

I open my compass and see the image inside it change. It was a pair a mismatched eyes. One brown and one blue. The blue eye looked murderous and the brown one looked like an abyss of rage.

"Marvelous." I snarl, snapping it shut. This was getting more and more complicated by the second. I had no clue what those eyes represented or who they belonged to.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I had Charms after and Pan met me in class, moving to sit beside me, Greta and Abby in class. I handed in my homework, and we began to work on some more spells.

The professor assigned more homework that I already knew how to complete. Like last class, I finished within ten minutes and then started to get ahead of the class in things I hadn't studied yet.

I'd begun to take notes on those chapters and scribbled all the important notes in my notebook. Albus had given me a couple of notebooks that I appreciated grandly. I remembered by writing things down, so having notebooks to write in helped me a ton.

We had lunch and then Abby and I had Potions. I walk in only to shriek in shock.

My shriek has Abby screaming in fear as well, jumping up and kicking up her knees like a baby deer.

We stumble back in horror.

Slughorn was standing there as if he had been waiting for us. He'd been tapping his foot, acting impatient. Our screams have him yelling out in shock, and he rushes back as well.

All three of us had our wands raised before we figure out what had happened.

"Why did you scream!!" Abby demands, smacking my shoulder.

"He was standing there like some murderer! I thought he was there to kill us!!" I exclaim, and Slughorn flushes.

"Apologies for frightening you, Ms. Dumbledore. Ms. Diggory." He tells us, walking away in embarrassment and Abby looks at me.

"You are too paranoid woman." She scoffs and I roll my eyes.

"Try living in an orphanage your whole damn life, then tell me if I'm being paranoid Diggory!!" I snap.

"Ahem." Someone coughs.

"On second!" Abby says. "Wait, you lived in an orphanage?" She demands and I nod, crossing my arms.

"Unfortunately," I grumble.

"Ahem." The person coughs again.

"One second," I say this time.

"I thought I told you this?" I ask her, and she shakes her head frantically.

"No! I would've known if you told me you lived in an orphanage." She demands and then the person coughs again a bit louder this time.

"AHEM!"

"ONE SECOND!" We both yell, whirling around to meet Tom Riddle's unemotional eyes. Beside him stood the guy who had been coughing. I stick my wand back in my hair.

"Do you need to see the infirmary?" I ask the guy, ignoring Tom entirely.

"You're blocking the doorway genius." The blonde guy replies.

I find my eyes running down the length of his face before raising an eyebrow. "Malfoy?" I ask, and he looks at me in confusion.

"Do we know each other?" He asks me, and I shake my head.

"Nope." I grin. Damn, he looked so much like Lucius Malfoy with darker blonde hair than Lucius did but the same pale, pointed face and cold grey eyes.

Tom eyes the three of us with uninterest as if we were fleas beneath his feet. The notion has my hands clenching at my sides. My eyes flit down, and curiously I see his own hands in fists as well. So he could feel human emotion.

Good.

We'd start there.

Tom sees my line of sight and meets my eyes, his filled with a sort of mean disregard. I smirk, rolling my eyes at him.

"Malfoy, you should've just said something instead of coughing like you had pneumonia." I scoff and whirl around, Abby flanking my side. We left the Malfoy boy sputtering in the doorway.

I'm stooped by Slughorn again.

"Here, you are Ms.Dumbledore." He tells me, handing me my potions book, and I smile.

"Thanks, professor." I thank him kindly, and his tense stance relaxes before he sends me a kinder smile.

"I wrote what things you should catch up on. If you need any help, come see me after class, and I'd be delighted to help you." He tells me. I nod, moving to head towards Abby's side, but Slughorn calls me back.

"Ah, Ms. Dumbledore. This class has assigned partners. It used to be an odd number of students, but now with your appearance, it has become even." He tells me, leading me towards a table. "You're partner is Mr. Riddle here." He tells me, and I whip my head around to stare at an even more annoyed Tom Riddle.

Great. Just fan-freaking great.


	12. Exploding over Potions

Slughorn stared at the pair of us.

"Is that all right?" He asks, looking concerned. We must've been wearing the same enraged expression because we both smile at him at the same time.

"Yes, of course, Professor." We say in unison. We whip around, glaring at each other again.

That was seriously creepy.

"Well. That's simply lovely." Slughorn says, walking away, shooting us looks every minute or so. I raise a brow at the Slytherin, shooing him over with my hands like he was a dog. I sit on the corner chair, and he looked enraged.

"I am not an animal." He hisses like a snake, eyes swirling in anger, and I remember that he was adept at Parseltongue. Poor Harry and Ettie. I think that was something my niece and nephew had inherited from the boy beside me when Voldemort had tried to kill the two as mere babies. My mood darkens instantly at the thought.

"Perhaps not a mammal, but maybe a snake suits you better Mr.Riddle." I hiss back, and he blinks in surprise at the utter hostility in my voice or perhaps at the meaning behind my words.

"Just don't get in my way." He orders snidely. I realize how much authority his voice held. It was low, with an agreeable trace of huskiness and with a hint of more power than a thirteen-year-old should have.

"Don't get into mine, and we have a deal," I order back, eyes not even bothering to look at him.

I open the book, looking at the note Slughorn had left me. I hum under my breath reading through it, with the paper in-between my right index finger and thumb. I was almost through it when the paper was swiped from my vision. "Excuse me?!" I demand in outrage, watching as Riddle read through it with barely concealed curiosity.

When he realized what it was, he literally throws it back on my book with a scoff. I shut my book, staring at the Slytherin, both my eyebrows raised expectantly. Tom realizes I was looking at him.

"Whatever is the matter?" He asks, looking through his own book. He thought what he just did was perfectly alright. I cross my arms, grabbing the paper and stuffing it in his face. He sputters, moving his head away from me.

"Hand it to me as a damn gentleman should!" I demand.

"Wouldn't you have to be a proper lady for me to do that?" He scorns, and I gape at him, my face growing red in a fit of anger. I slam the paper back into my textbook, eyeing the cauldron beside him and my lips quiver up in mirth.

My palm clenches into a fist, and the magic that escapes my palm causes the cauldron beside him to explode. He jumps back, head whipping around to glare at me accusingly.

"Mr. Riddle?" Slughorn asks in concern. Tom's eyes were lethal, and he looked like he wanted to shove me off my stool. His class and image wouldn't dare allow him to do something so unbefitting of the perfect Tom Riddle.

"Is everything alright?" Slughorn continues. I can feel Tom's glare on my back, but I act like I'm unaware. I keep my head down, reading the pages that Slughorn had written on the blackboard.

"Yes, sir. Everything is quite fine. Valentine just dropped a cauldron." Tom explains, and I whip around to meet his mocking black eyes, my own eyes narrowed in slits.

I don't know why but I had the sudden urge to wring a snake

I take my wand out the same time that he does. We both glower at each other. Without looking at the cauldron, he reassembles the broken pieces putting it back in place on our shared table.

"No need to be embarrassed, Tom. Everyone breaks a cauldron once in a while. No need to blame others." I sneer loudly, forcing a laugh, as I whirl on my rear to face the front of the class again.

"Just be careful, you two," Slughorn orders us, but we aren't even paying attention to him. Tom had his teeth gritted so hard, they looked ready to shatter at any second.

"You are an utter annoyance to my existence." He growls under my breath.

"Aw, we feel the same towards each other. Amazing!" I say in sarcastic glee, rolling my eyes to continue reading my book.

"Ou the Confusing Concoction." I murmur excited. This was always a fun potion to make. I have expected Severus to walk in, allowing everyone to become utterly silent in fear.

I sigh outwardly, blowing my bangs from my face as I got up to get my cauldron prepared. Riddle was watching me with a weird look on his face. "You brewed this before." He states like it was a fact and not an inquiry, eyes not meeting mine, but I could still see the curiosity in them.

"Nope." I lie with a grin. "Should be simple enough, though." I muse, reading over the steps like I didn't have the recipe memorized by heart because of the weekly quizzes Snape used to give us.

"Good. At least you aren't a complete waste of oxygen and space." He mutters under his breath and my lip curls in rage.

"You do know we have to brew this batch together, right? As a team!?" I snap, and he rolls his eyes.

"I don't need to be read instructions to, Dumbledore. I'm not utterly incompetent like you." He scoffs.

This guy was getting on my last nerve. "Go get the ingredients, you daft monkey." I snarl. "I'll start up the batch."

He rolls his eyes before walking away to get the ingredients of the potion.

I was humming slightly as I brought the cauldron and the water inside it to a slight simmer. Riddle peers inside it looking to see if something had changed between the three minutes he had left me in.

"It's water genius," I say in a dull tone. He glares at me, making me arch a brow at him. "Give me the sneezewort. I need to measure some out and dry them up. Measure out the lovage." I continue in a distracted tone.

He decides to grab the lovage and the scurvy grass. "The Scurvy grass goes in first." He jeers and I roll my eyes.

"Did you hear me mention anything about the damn scurvy grass? Let the water simmer for three minutes, then put it in."

He rolls his eyes back. "It needs to simmer for four minutes." He maintains calmly, making me want to slap my forehead.

"Riddle, I swear I'm about a second away from shoving your own wand in a place where the sun doesn't shine," I warn, making him stare at me silently like he didn't even care that I was threatening him at all.

"Just go measure the sneezewort, Troll girl." He scoffs, turning around.

I was getting a headache.

I turn around and measure out my sneezewort, drying them up with a quick wave of my wand. I dump the sneezewort in after the scurvy grass had simmered for a bit. Humming, I grab some of the unicorn tears I'd grabbed, and drop a couple of drops in without Tom seeing.

Snape had told me this helped thicken the batch much more and much quicker. It wasn't part of the recipe, but Snape was a master at potions. All my respect to him.

"What are you doing?" Tom suddenly snaps in a dangerous tone. I ignore him, putting the unicorn tears to the side and starting the stir the batch. Tom grabs my wrist. "We need to restart. You messed it up." He sneers, making I scoff.

"No, I did not." I muse.

"Unicorn tears are not in the list of materials!" He rages in a quiet hiss.

I watch him carefully. Why was he getting so angry about this? "It'll help trust me," I tell him, but he shakes his head, moving to dump the contents of the cauldron in the sink as if the idea of ever trusting me was absurd. I'm the one to grab his hand this time, eyes blazing in anger.

"You want to restart. Be my damn guest, but this-" I point to the contents of the cauldron. "Is staying." I shove him away, plopping down in my seat and covering his seat by bringing my feet up and resting it on it,

If looks could kill, I'd be seven feet under and my soul in Hell by now. "If we end up having to stay extra time because of your incompetence, I will-" He growls, getting ready to threaten me.

"You'll what Tom?" I ask in a sickeningly sweet tone. "It'll work, and we'll be the first ones out. We'll finish in half the time it'll take the rest of this lot to finish. If it doesn't... do your worst, and I won't complain." I state, moving my right hand to shake his. He stares at my hand in disgust, smacking it away like I was infected with some disease.

He sits down on his stool, shoving my feet off with little effort on his part. I scoff and grab the lovage he had measured.

I wave my wand, and the lovage catches fire. I blow them out softly and slowly, waiting for them to turn to ashes.

"You certain you haven't done this before?" Tom asks me then, eyes keen. I shrug, shaking my head.

"Wanna assist me, you fat arse?" I ask, making his eyes widen at my language.

"You are definitely no lady." He scoffs again. I was fighting the urge to punch him in the face.

"You'll get expelled. You'll get expelled." I mutter under my breath.

"For what?" Riddle asks.

"Why for breaking your nose, of course." I turn back to my cauldron.

True to my word, we finished in at least a quarter the time it took everyone else to finish.

"Well done, Ms. Dumbledore! Mr. Riddle! This is faster than even you can do on your own me, boy!" Slughorn beams at us, looking like a proud parent.

Riddle was wearing a nasty scowl on his face, staring at the potion we'd made in disbelief. As if going against the book was something unthinkable.

"Thank you, professor." I beam, and he grabs our cauldron.

"I'm actually going to take this with me." He admits.

"This is perfect!" He raves on, moving to show everyone in the class our potion.

I pack my bag, filling it with the notes of the calculations and measurements I'd done, my quills and my book. I started to walk outside when I notice Tom was walking beside me, flanking my side.

He looked torn of whether or not to apologize and the thought of apologizing made him want to hurl.

I chuckle in amusement. "No need, Riddle." I muse, and he looks up, eyes glinting in distaste.

"Pardon?" He asks, mouth twisting up like he ate something sour.

The expression has me laughing.

"Since I upheld my end of the bargain, you owe me." I taunt. He sighs, looking away as if my mere presence was unbefitting of him. I'd had enough.

"Riddle!" I snap, and he whips around to stare at me like I was crazy. "You lost the bargain. I won. The only thing I want in return is a little respect. That alright, buddy?" I seethe, and I walk up so close to him that I could feel his body warmth. I look up at him, eyes blazing.

My blue orbs clash with his black ones.

I smirk slowly.

"Respect is for those who deserve it...not for those who demand it. I now deserve your respect." I quip, walking backwards, my eyes not leaving his as I say my next words.

"But, you don't deserve mine."


	13. Demonic

I was sitting at dinner alone, considering I'd finished the confusing concoction in quarter the time everyone else did. Most of the other students were in their own classes.

I had a bowl of rice and chicken to my left and the book I'd stolen from the restricted section in the library. No one was even around me, and even if there had been... I'd charmed the book to look like my Potions book.

My eyes skimmed over the book, eyes reading all the spells in extreme curiosity. The spells in there held utter power. I knew because I'd used one in first year. The raw power I had mixed with the strong black magic I was using attracted a demon. Abaddon was undoubtedly a handful. He was fiercely protective of his little witch, me, and considering he used my body as a host and anchor for his demonic entity, I saw him a lot.

And that's the story of how I ended up with a demon living inside me. I could feel him coming forward, making my eyes go raw black, signalling his control. "Interesting," He hisses, and I snort.

"You find anything evil interesting, Abaddon."

"This spell is for cutting off limbs!" The damn demon actually squeals in glee at the prospect. Considering that a demon had intertwined himself with my soul, we both became exceedingly powerful.

He was why my own power amplified by a thousand folds. Anything he found interesting or useful was engraved in my mind for eternity. So all the nasty, evil spells he adored in here.... I memorized and could use like it was second nature to me.

Ettie had done the same only she wasn't at a complete agreement with her own demon. The beast was trying to take over her body instead of share it with her. Which was why she got so godawful sick every time she let him take control.

"See anything you like?" I ask my demon.

"Everything." He answers, and I find myself flipping through the pages extremely quick as if I was memorizing everything just by looking at the pages that lay in front of me. I knew that was what he was doing- remembering every damn spell in the book.

This was how I sorta kept him at equilibrium with my own capabilities. Just like I had to grow and develop in power... so did Abaddon; otherwise, we'd both die.

"What on earth are you doing?" Asked a smooth voice in front of me.

Abaddon instantly vanishes at the voice, and my eyes go back to their original blue with his disappearance.

Tom was watching me with that damn charming and intelligent expression he used on everyone. 

"Riddle?" I inquire, and he moves to sit in the place in front of me. He did it so effortlessly and elegantly that I blinked in surprise.

"You're sitting with me?" I ask, but he's silent, pointing at the book I was reading.

"I can see through your futile charm Dumbledore." He sneers a superior glimmer in his eyes.

My brows furrow and I smile at him, such a forced smile that my facial muscles started to ache. "I have utterly no clue what you are insinuating Riddle." I sneer back, and in a single swipe, he grabs the book before I could think to grab it.

My face contorts to one of raw rage.

"Give me that!" I explode, but he smirks, the arrogance sweeping out of him like waves.

"This is a restricted book." He says as if talking to himself. He glances up at me, and I realized I'd climbed on the table, hovering over him like some bird.

"Get down from there, Dumbledore." He scoffs and grabs my forearm, shoving me down to sit beside him.

The coolness of his grip has my face turning red for some reason, and I can't help the curse I mutter.

"Why are you reading such a book?" He asks. My eyes turn to him in confusion. I try to grab the book from his grip, but he grips it harder.

"Riddle, let go." I seethe, but his smirk grows wider as if he enjoyed causing me discomfort.

"Give me an answer, Dumbledore." He repeats calmly. I slump back beside him, giving him a look of pure malice.

He looked at me then, his black eyes drilling into mine. I couldn't help but think - I'd never seen such dark eyes before. They were two onyx orbs that shined when the light hit them from every angle.

"Why do you even care?!" I snap. Tom raises a brow.

"Care? I do not care." He spits the word out like it was a curse. "I do not feel such trivial emotions. I am intrigued, you foolish girl." He snorts.

"Why does the cousin of the great-" He scoffs at the word. "-Albus Dumbledore have a book filled to the brim-" He flips through the book, skimming through it like he was the one trying to drill the spells in his mind. "-with such gruesome spells?" He asks in a soft murmur.

I shut the book on his hand, my palm on the book in his lap.

"So do you want me to kill him? Can I try the limb spell?" Abaddon asks in a hopeful voice.

"No!" I hiss out loud in shock.

Abaddon was freaking crazy. I would not endanger every student at the school by allowing Abaddon to unleash his full power on the Slytherin in front of me.

"No?" Tom muses, making my gaze snap to his.

I hum out a smile, ignoring his last question and answering his previous one. "I have it for research purposes. I'm going find every dark spell that Grindlewald might attempt to use in the wizarding war and learn it so I can use it against him as well." I say quickly, and Abaddon snorts in my mind.

"Sure, little witch." He chimes and I wanted to smack the stupid demon.

In a single swipe, I slide the book off of Tom's lap and onto mine.

Tom was eyeing it in intrigue. "I want to assist." He declares, making me scoff.

"No."

I knew the need for darkness was prospering deep inside him, This book, filled with awful, horrifying spells that one wouldn't even see in their deepest, darkest dreams was of grand interest to the third year Slytherin in front of me.

"I am an astonishing wizard," Tom argues, his abilities getting to head, and I roll my eyes.

"And I don't care." I mock him

"I didn't ask whether or not you did." He retorts, face scrunching in displeasure as he snatched the book back away from me. His tone was effortlessly smooth.

"Riddle. I swear if you don't return that-" I start to threaten.

"You'll what, Dumbledore?" Tom mimics my comeback from back in our Potions class.

I move to sit on top of the table, sliding my food over as I nibble on my rice. "Do you ever eat?" I ask suddenly, remembering that I never once saw him indulging in food.

"Of course, I eat Dumbledore." He scoffs, making me raise a brow at him. I watch as he flipped through all the pages I'd already memorized with Abaddon. Abaddon was getting annoyed at the student that sat rummaging through the book he'd come to love. Especially since he still had a couple hundred pages left to experience.

"Want a chicken leg?" I ask, suddenly. Riddle turns his head to gaze from me to the chicken. I think he did that twice before I got impatient. "It's a simple question." I muse.

He reaches over grabs a fork from the untouched plate beside him, and he stabs it into the chicken I'd offered him. He sits there silent, nibbling on the chicken leg every so often. All the while, he flipped through the book of deadly spells.

I think I might've accidentally caused the Dark Lord to get more powerful. The thought has me cringing.

"I wish I knew these spells when I was in the orphanage." I find myself saying. My words have Tom tensing up. I thought he was going to ignore me like always, but he turns to look up at me.

He grabs my forearm again and shoves me back down onto the bench beside him. "Stop sitting on tables. It's disrespectful." He orders natural authority in his tone.

He goes back to reading my book. Eyes still reading, never looking up from the pages, he asks me, voice slick. "Were you ever hurt by them?"

I understood exactly what he meant. He was asking if I'd ever been abused.

"He's very similar to you, my dear." Grandmama's voice rings in my ears.

My eyes darken as I remember the screaming, the pain and the tears I'd experienced living at that dreadful place.

I realize Tom had looked up from his book and was staring at me. I look to my right and meet his curious eyes. Understanding dawned on them as he reads my expression. "Yes." I shrug and smile again. "But they'll never be able to again." I murmur quietly.

I see an expression of discomfort etch on Tom's features. His lip curls and he looks back to the book. My eyes flit over to his clenched fist holding on to the fork as if it was a weapon.

"Muggles can be utterly filthy creatures." He snarls under his breath. I could feel his anger coming out in waves.

"Not all." I muse and Tom pauses. "One of them would always try to help me and end up being hurt as well. It was dreadful. I can still smell the blood. I can still hear her screams," I muse in a whisper, remembering those nights like I was reliving an old nightmare.

I think I'd begun to talk to myself, not realizing Tom was there anymore. I clear my throat, coming back to my senses.

Tom meets my gaze, and I'm confident he saw glimpses of my haunted past in my eyes because that's what I saw reflected in his own. I also saw an understanding that no one would have had unless they lived through the exact same thing.

"Perhaps." He agrees, lips still in a sneer. The word he snarled has me smiling.

There was some hope yet.


	14. Hot Chocolate Fixes Everything

A couple of weeks passed, and I'd fallen into a sort of routine. Chris, Claude, Abby, Pan and Greta were my closest friends, and we usually hung out together.

I had even grown much closer to Aberforth and Albus. They treated me like family now. I'd visited grandmama Helga twice more in this time, just trying to figure out where precisely the Smiths lived.

I was trying to get used to living in this time. It was working, and I was getting accustomed to seeing Abby grinning at me from her place in the bed beside mine, and trying to get Pan and Abby from murdering each other every two days. Claude's annoying sense of humour was growing on me. Chris's abnormal need to care for everyone in our little group was amusing, as I was usually the mom of the group. Little Greta was the shy one we all adored. She was like our younger sister, always piping up with stuff to do, and always trying to keep peace between us.

I only saw Tom in the classes we'd shared, which was quite a lot. He only ever annoyed me in Potions, but sometimes I'd feel his steady gaze on me like I was at laser point.

At this point, I should've just started planning to sneak into every Smith house to see if they had my damn goblet. Technically I wasn't stealing it. I was simply returning it to my grandma Helga, and she would give it back to me.

I found out where some of the Smiths lived by asking around and doing my own research.

Christmas break was upon us, and I found myself saying goodbye to all my friends as they headed home for Christmas. I got five offers to come and stay with them, but I refused goodheartedly. I loved all five of them, but I still had a task to complete.

It was the next day, and I found myself sitting in one of the window stills outside the Great Hall. I was scribbling down coordinates and trying to figure out how exactly I was going to get the cup back from Hepzibah Smith. I had utterly no clue where the woman lived. I needed to get her address somehow.

According to grandmama Helga, she was a very vain and conceited woman. "Besotted wench." Grandmama had muttered under her breath.

I close my notebook, walking into the mostly empty Great Hall. Everyone was gone for the holidays except for the rare few.

I see Tom Riddle in the corner, sipping from a gold mug like a fine king. He was reading something that sat on the table in front of him. I decided to act before I lost my nerve.

Marching over, I plop in the seat across him. I open my notebook and begin scribbling in it again, ignoring Tom completely when he looks up to see who had dared interrupt his reading.

"Dumbledore." He drawls in his usual smooth tone. His voice sends goosebumps down the length of my arms.

"Riddle," I answer in a similar tone to his.

I see him eyeing me in annoyance. "To what do I owe the pleasure of your company?" He asks, raising a perfect brow. I look up, and my gaze clashes with his own.

"Maybe your silence?" I pipe, making him scowl in anger.

"You are the annoyance that interrupted my afternoon read."

I glance at the book he was reading. I recognize the passage he was reading instantly. It was our Potions textbook. He was researching the Confusing Concoction potion we'd done during our first potion lab together.

"Seriously, Riddle? It's Christmas, and you're doing homework?" I murmur in an amused tone. His eyebrows furrow in exasperation.

"Says the girl obsessing over the Smith family." He sneers, making my smile drop instantly. My lips purse irritated beyond compare. What on earth made me sit with Tom Riddle of all people.

"He reminded you of yourself." Abaddon starkly says with an evil chuckle.

"No one asked for your input!" I emphasize to both of the males in my company.

Tom had, though. He reminded me of the days I would sit alone in the orphanage, watching kids come in and out laughing and giggling. I was never found without a book in my hands, huge, round-rimmed glasses always perched on the bridge of my nose. He reminded me of the sadness I felt every Christmas at celebrating all alone.

"How did you know to put unicorn tears in the potion?" He asks, ignoring my outburst like answering was beneath him. I smile slightly, remembering Snape.

"A very, very smart man told me," I answer truthfully. The unappealing truth I gave him has him scoffing.

"Of course, you wouldn't come up with it on your own." He preens, his eyes dismissing me in an instant as he continued reading the potions book.

"How'd you know I was researching the Smith family?" I ask quickly. He doesn't look up.

"You've been asking around." He answers, still trying to dismiss me.

"Paying attention to me, I see." I snort, and he whips his head up with a snort of his own.

"Don't flatter yourself, Dumbledore. You're a troll with a brain the size of a peanut." He insults me, but my smile grows.

He sighs, closing his book, looking half a second away from hexing me. "What Dumbledore?" He demands, irritated at my presence.

"I may be a troll with a brain the size of a peanut... but you're the one paying attention to this troll." I quip back.

My words have him rolling his eyes. "An arrogant troll, I see." He sneers.

"A mirror would crack if it had to stare at you for more than two seconds." He retorts, leaning back and crossing his arms. He was trying to intimidate me, I realize. I copy him, my lips turning up amused when his eyes narrow in suspicion.

"Why are you interested in the Smiths?" Tom queried.

"They have something of mine that I require back," I answer.

"And what, pray tell, may that be?"

"My grandmother's goblet," I say truthfully. He looked baffled and confused.

"You went through all this-" He motions to my notebook, bringing his hand around a full 360 degrees, nose crinkling in disgust. "-trouble just for a mere goblet?" He inquires and then hands me the goblet he'd been drinking out of. "Here. There you are. A goblet." He jeers, mocking me with every derogatory move he made.

"Wow. Very clever." I give him a sarcastic round of applause. "If I needed just any goblet, I'd go to the kitchens where they have clean ones you imbecile. Not ones with-" I stop to sniff what he'd been drinking. "-hot chocolate in them?" I ask, and he turns away, acting like he didn't hear me. I saw his ears redden a tad, making me grin in amusement.

Lord Voldemort enjoyed drinking hot chocolate. Who knew.

"They have a shop in Hogsmeade, you know." He sighs exasperated, and I look up in shock.

"Seriously?" I ask and move to I get up about to leave. He grabs my forearm, standing up and walking around the table to meet me. I look at him, confused. "What?" I question him, and he raises a brow.

"Do you know where the shop is?" He asks, and I stop.

"I can just ask someone." I think, but Tom shakes his head.

"I'll accompany you. I have nothing better to do, seeing as you interrupted my afternoon reading." He scowls.

"You are definitely an old man trapped in a thirteen-year-old's body," I conclude, after staring at him for a second. "There is no other explanation," I announce, but Tom just shoves me forward.

"I'll meet you in the Courtyard in ten minutes. Don't you dare be late." He orders, leaving before I could say something else. I was glaring at where he left for a solid minute before I strode away, going to my dorm to get the jacket Albus had given me a couple of weeks ago.

"Ignorant evil prick," I mumble under my breath.


	15. Knocking on Knockturn Alley

I meet a very cross Tom in the courtyard. He was dressed in a very warm black coat and matching boots. I walk to meet his turned back, dressed in my own blue coat. It was immensely warm, and I thanked Albus a million times over for getting it for me.

I move to stand beside the weird boy and look back from him to what he was looking at. I realize that he was watching the sunset. My eyes flicker upwards to examine the sunset at the horizon, spreading its light into a grateful sky. Rich hues of red blended with oranges, purples, crimsons.

"It's beautiful," I admit, making Tom turn around to give me a deadpanned look.

"You are late." He says in a toneless voice. I raise a brow and point to my coat.

"I was getting my coat." I grin in delight. He curls his lip, staring at me from head to toe. I swallow hard and can actually feel the coolness of his gaze. It makes me shiver slightly.

"Matches your eyes." He points out like it was a common fact. His words have my face heating up. "Well, hurry along then," Tom demands, impatient.

"Girls are so emotional." He jeers as I catch up, walking to his side.

"And boys aren't?" I ask. Tom looked like he wanted to shove me off a cliff.

"You were the one who turned a bright red just because I pointed out the colour of your eyes." He told me off.

I push him in a fit of embarrassment. "You arse!" I demand, making him peer at me in unemotional detachment.

"You should really try to get a better hand on your emotions. Your an actual train wreck, aren't you?" He insults me.

"It's better than being some unemotional tree stub." I snarl, making him snort.

"Sure, Dumbledore. Sure." He says extremely sarcastic. "Hurry along." He orders, and I grind my teeth in aggravation. I was too emotional. He was right. I often acted before I thought through the situation. Albus exploited that specific characteristic that had caused me to be sent back in time.

"Are you certain you want to get this goblet?" Tom asks me, sneering when he says the word goblet, and I nod my head feverishly.

"Yup." He nods slightly and then looks around.

"Do you know how to apparate?" He asks me, making me look up at him with wide eyes.

"Apparate? You said apparate?" I ask, gaping, and he shrugs, like what he asked was incredibly normal.

"Do you?" He asks again.

"No!! Of course not! That's illegal, Tom!" I hiss at him, but he just rolls his eyes and grabs my arm.

"Hold on tight. Don't mention this to another soul... considering you owe me now, it should be fine." He orders muttering, utterly confident in his ability to charm everyone he meets and his way through life.

I lunge forward and grip his arm tightly, and then he apparates. It lasts for a second, the feeling of my stomach being taken apart and then reassembled, but we're then landing, and I have to grip Tom even tighter so I don't fall.

"You good?" Tom sighs in distaste, his voice as sharp and icy as a glacier. I think he was just trying to entertain himself. He obviously had nothing better to do and just decided to come and annoy me.

"You can apparate?" I ask him, clutching my stomach. He eyes my movement and lets out a groan.

"I swear Dumbledore if I have to rearrange your small intestines around..." He grumbles, moving to give me a bland look.

"Nope. I'm perfectly fine." I wheeze, and he actually snickers, making me stare at him stunned.

"You certain?" He purses his lips, and I nod.

"Then let go of my arm Dumbledore." Tom rolls his eyes. I jump away from him like he was on fire.

"Where did you learn to do that?" I demand after my nausea had worn off, looking at him as we walked through the massive crowd in Diagon Alley.

"Books." He answers distractedly.

"Touché," I grumble. "Guess that's my next big task." I muse, and he turns to raise a brow.

"You want to learn to apparate?" He scoffs and I snap my fingers, causing him to fly into the wall a couple feet away.

"Wanna question the witch who knows wandless and nonverbal magic that again?" I smirk, making him send me a lethal glare.

"Don't think that just because I am above harming females that I won't make you cry if I ever dual you." He snarls, making me scoff.

"You wish," I whisper at him. He brushes the dust off his coat and turns to brush past me.

"So, do they know that we are coming to get the goblet?" He murmurs when I catch up to him for like the fourth time. I go dark red and look sideways. He gives me an are you kidding me look. "So we are stealing it. Lovely." He exhales harshly.

"Not steal! I'm just getting it back! Technically it belongs to my grandmama." I muse, thinking about it before nodding.

"I understand if you feel uncomfortable and don't want to be involved," I tell him, making him scoff.

"Uncomfortable?" He sneers, giving a malicious laugh. It was cold and chilled me to the bone. "No. Not uncomfortable. Just wondering what on earth went wrong with you to end up this way.." He chortles.

"Nothing went wrong with me. That cup belongs to my grandmama, and I'm going to get it back." I snap at him. "Feel free to help me. Or keep laughing all out here by yourself." I quip at him, turning to walk away.

He grabs my arm and hoists it through his, so we had our arms linked. "You don't even know where you are going, you daft girl." He jeers, snorting in disappointment. I raise an eyebrow at our hands.

"Touchy-feely, are we?" I declare, making him scoff.

"Don't flatter yourself. I'd never be caught dead with someone that looks like you." He mocks, and I sigh.

"What's that supposed to mean?" I ask, in a tired voice.

"You're an ugly bastard." He states without hesitating, and I have to swallow back the lump of emotion that had formed in my throat.

"Good thing, I don't give a crap about your opinion Riddle." I muse, pointing at the store. "That it?" I ask before he could make a snide retort. He nods, pulling me along.

"Stay close. This is not a very nice neighbourhood." He admits, and I shiver slightly.

"We're in Knockturn alley, aren't we?" I cringe, seeing Tom give me a curt nod.

"You come here often?" I chuckle and then his lips tilt upwards, and I was sure he was fighting a smile. His eyes were still the most unemotional black pits of emptiness I had come to grow accustomed to. They held no happiness in them whatsoever, and his dark eyes did not match the expression on his face.

"This isn't the Smith shop..." I murmur, mind going wild. "Riddle!" I hiss, and he raises a brow.

"I lied. They don't even have a shop." He discloses in a dull tone.

"What?!" I demand, ripping away from him only to slam into the back of someone behind me.

I whirl around, and my eyes meet an adult male's estranged eyes. "Pretty little flower." He coos in a nasty, raspy voice. He moves to grab my hand, but I jump back, reaching quickly for my wand and holding it up threateningly.

"Away, Ernie." Tom's malicious voice rips through the quiet evening. I flinch at the raw harshness in his tone.

Ernie eyes the pair of us interested, and unconsciously, I find myself walking backwards until I hit something hard. Tom wraps an arm around me and glares at the man.

"She's with me." He snarls, making the man back up, hands up in defeat. All that could be seen were Tom's frosty features, bleak and unforgiving. The arm around me had his wand gripped loosely in it.

"I told you to stay close." He snarls in my ear, smacking my head lightly with his two fingers.

"Why are we here, anyways!" I hiss in response, not moving away because of the weird man but still angry at Tom nonetheless.

"The Smiths are notorious for coming here," Tom responds, untangling himself from me with a snide look, leading the way towards the dimly lit store.


	16. Unexpected Visitors

I was in Knockturn Alley.

Molly Weasley would've had my head if she ever found out I had been here. Fred and George would've been ecstatic and asked hundreds of questions that would've made my head whirl.

Borgin and Burkes.

Tom freaking Riddle was taking me to Borgin and Burkes. Of all the places he could have had taken me... he took me to Lucius Malfoy's vacation spot. I grumble profanities under my breath. "Stupid Malfoy," I mutter, making Tom send me an industrious look.

"Just stay silent. I'm obviously much more charming than you are, so stay silent." He repeats not even looking at me. I mock his tone from behind him. "Extremely mature, Dumbledore." Tom taunts me.

Borgin and Burkes was known to be a ruthless and very dangerous shop. It was one of the most notorious of the alley's shops. It specialized in Dark magic. It was known to be affiliated with Death eaters and Lord Voldemort....well, the boy in front of me. After a second, I realize why Tom would take me here. My grandmama's goblet was ancient and extremely powerful. It could've ended up here.

"Smart." I murmur and Tom gives me a haughty look.

"I thought so." He gloats, making me huff in exasperation.

"Or it's because you have an unhealthy obsession with dark magic and dark artifacts." I sing in my own taunting tone.

"My interests are none of your concern." He opens the door and steps inside, not bothering to wait for me. I groan, resisting the urge to fling him into another wall.

I follow him into the store and come to a stop beside his unmoving body. "Welcome!!" Someone yells, and his extremely eager tone has me narrowing my eyes suspiciously.

The eager expression on his face dampens when he sees two teenagers in the doorway of his store. "If you're here to window-shop, I'll stick my hands down your throat and pluck out your ribs." The man snarls, making me chuckle, amused.

"I'd like to see you try." I pronounce, turning my back to him as I looked around, my eyes darting everywhere, trying to see if my grandma's goblet resided on the shelves anywhere. "Does a Hepzibah Smith come around here often?" I ask, voice clear and loud. Tom and the man were staring at me in silence.

The man in front of me was either Mr. Borgin or Mr. Burkes, and I let my eyes take in the middle-aged man's appearance silently. He was a stooping man with extremely oily, black hair. His attire was almost pyjama-ware, and I raise an eyebrow not impressed at all.

The man ignores me completely. I walk around the counter when I realize the man was looking at Tom. I grab the book he had on top of it and flip through the alphabetical list of customers. I get to Hepzibah Smith's name and scribble her postal code and phone number on my wrist with a pen I found on the desk.

"Give me THAT!!" The man snarls at me, ripping the book from the grasp, but I don't mind. I'd gotten all I needed from it.

"You kids shouldn't be in here." The man crows, making Tom step into the shop as well. He gives me a weird look and starts gazing around.

I walk up, and my lips curve upwards into a smile when I see the Hand of Glory. Harry hated this thing. It freaked him out.

I study it silently, and the hand starts to move. It closes its fist and brings its index finger up, motioning me forward like a dog, taunting me.

Abaddon instantly comes forward, and my eyes shine black, warning the thing away. It raises all its fingers in shock only to shrivel into a closed fist on its stand. My eyes go back to their blue colour, my sclera coming into view, and I see the shop owner staring at the hand gaping. "It never does that! What did you do to my hand!?" He snarls. I take a step back, motioning him forward.

"Nothing. It was taunting me, so I taunted back." I smirk, and the man rushes forward to see if his precious hand was alright, but his own hand ends up ensnared in the clawed hand's grip.

I step back, stifling a laugh with my hand, eyes alight with mirth. Tom steps up beside me. "Find it?" He asks in a low tone, and I shake my head. I knew it wouldn't be here even if I'd hoped I'd find some short cut and find it here. It was with Hepzibah Smith. Tom eyes the scene with amusement in his eyes.

"Nice work." He murmurs, voice like silk. "He was getting on my last nerve too." He admits, making me chuckle.

"Should we help the poor man?" I ask as we start to step outside. Tom turns back, eyebrow raised.

"Do you want to help him?" He asks, and I crinkle my brow in disgust at the thought of helping the mean man.

"Exactly, Dumbledore. Now let's go and find your damn goblet." He orders, making me sigh. Right before I step out after Tom, I glance back and forth between Tom and man screaming his head off.

I sigh and raise my hand, shooting a gust of magic towards the Hand of Glory. I turn around and hurry to fall in step with Tom. He didn't mention anything, but we both heard it when the screams stopped.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Hepzibah Smith?" Tom asks as we stroll through the cold night.

"Yup. I did some research, and I've concluded that she's the one that has my grandmama's goblet." I tell him.

"The Hufflepuff Cup?" Tom asks quickly, but I don't fall for it. He wanted me to slip up and admit to being a descendant. I knew he was a descendant of Salazar Slytherin, but there was no way I was telling Lord Voldemort that I was Helga Hufflepuff's granddaughter a couple hundred years over.

"Nope." I scoff, trying to make the lie believable. "Just a goblet that meant a fair much to my family. I never knew them, so I felt like having the goblet would be like having them close." I say quietly.

"Valid point Ms.Dumbledore. But you found two new family members did you not?" He asks, and I internally curse him for being so quick-witted.

"The goblet was passed down to my mum. No family is ever closer to you than your parents." I inform him, voice cool.

He hums his agreement, not bothering to look at me. "You know where she lives?" He asks, and I nod.

"I got her postal code from the shop. Would you apparate there?" I question. "It's nowhere near here," I inform him, gesturing around Diagon Alley.

"I want to see this damn goblet." He smirks, making my blood run cold.

He suspected. Of course, he suspected. I was such an idiot. He probably knew the Smiths were descendants of Helga Hufflepuff and was intrigued when he heard I was interested in them. He probably knew the only goblet I could've been interested in was the Goblet of Hufflepuff.

I meet his eyes and smirk. "I can't imagine why." I tease. "It's just a mere goblet." I grin and skip ahead, coming to a dead stop when we climb out of Knockturn Alley.

Screams.

Terrible, terrible screams.

Everyone was running. Kids were crying, and parents were picking their children up in an attempt to get out of the way.

"What's the matter? Dumbledore?" Tom demands, shoving me out of the way. I stumble to the side and grab at my necklace, feeling the coolness of the metal ease some of the fear and confusion I felt.

I grip Tom's sleeve. "Tom! What's going on!?" I fretted watching the disastrous scene unfold in front of me.

A wizard apparates out of nowhere and waves his wand, pointing it at a screaming child in the corner.

"NO!!" I scream as I ran and send a gust of magic at the man, sending the stupid wizard flying to the side.

"Dumbledore!" Tom seethes in anger when I rush over to the child. I ignore the cold look on Tom's face.

"Hush, child." I sing with a soft grin and lift her into my arms, only to almost ram my face into Tom's chest.

"You utter idiot Dumbledore!!" Tom explodes, eyes almost red in his anger. He looks at the crying kid in my hands in disgust. "You're going to get us killed for an ungrateful, whiny little brat." He snarls. I stare daggers at his head.

"She's JUST A KID!!" I snap, holding the sobbing kid closer. "Hush little one." I sing, rocking her back in forth.

"We need to retreat, you are going to get us killed!" He snaps, repeating himself, and I glare at him.

"I'm not leaving her!" I demand.

"Amazing, we're kidnapping a child. Excellent Dumbledore sincerely." He shoves me back.

"I have a kid in my hands!" I shout in retort, but Tom was ignoring me, pulling out his wand and shooting a spell.

A shield blasts out his wand just as another spell slams into it.

Tom doesn't even flinch as the spell explodes just outside his shield. I set the child behind us and step up to join Tom, my own wand raised as about five witches, and wizards surround us.

Between them was a face I recognized. "Grindelwald," I state in a rough tone. Tom looked utterly bored, but his eyes light up at the name I'd said. We were facing one of the greatest dark wizards of all time, not including Lord Voldemort himself, of course.

"Oh, you know me? The girl is quite smart." Grindelwald chortles and I see him peer around Tom and me, sighing. "Hand over the child. Come on, kids." He orders us. Tom moves to actually pick up the kid and hand her over to the evil man. He wore no facial expression. I aim my wand at his throat.

"Put her down." I fume, and Tom eyes me in disgust, holding the kid like she was distorted trash.

"We just hand her over, and we don't need to duel." He shrugs, making me I glower at him.

"Then, I blast your brains out." I shrug in the same tone.

Grindelwald snickers at us. "You don't want to fight us. You are mere children." He laughs at us, and I smirk, knowing he'd said just the right words to provoke Tom into fighting him. His one weakness... He was way too proud.

"Oh, you probably shouldn't have said that." I chuckle, retracting my wand to point it at Grindelwald himself. The man becomes enraged at my words, confusion filling his eyes. Tom sets the hysteric child down and raises his own wand at Grindelwald.

His eyes were hard, face set into one of pure spite and annoyance. They were narrowed, rigid, and cold.... they had a deadness, a stillness.

At that moment, I knew Tom was already far, far away. In his place was part of the man that grew to kill millions in the future to come.

"Come fight me and see for yourself, you fool." Tom seethes.


	17. Burn Till You Hear Screams

Grindelwald was angry.

He differed from all the textbook pictures he was in back in the future. He had light blond hair, and blue eyes with a thin white mustache and creased wrinkles all around his face. He had an air of arrogance that seeped all around him. Nothing that compared to that of Tom's, of course, but it was still there.

I put my wand back in my hair and raise my hands up. "What are you doing?!" Tom hisses, still angry at me. "You are the one that wanted to bloody duel them." He snaps, making me roll my eyes, shooting my hand out to put a protective enchantment over the shaking child.

"I prefer wandless magic. Faster." I quip, and his face dawns in recognition.

"Bring that shield down, you cowardice boy." Grindelwald taunts and I watch as Tom does the opposite and waves his wand again, strengthening the enchantment even more. My eyes follow the movements of the four other men that rounded us, trapping us in.

"We stay protected under the Protego charm for as long as we can." Tom orders and I nod, raising my own hands and casting my own spell. It burst out of my fingers and strengthened Tom's own spell.

"My spell was fine without your help." He quips, and I send him an annoyed look. He was honestly worse than the screaming child in the corner.

"A child that can do wandless magic." Grindelwald breathes in amazement. "I want that girl too! Capture her!" He yells, pointing at me in barely concealed madness.

"Great, Dumbledore. Now you're a wanted witch. I'd like to say it was a pleasure... but you've been a thorn in my side since day one." Tom snarls.

"Don't do your own wandless magic. They'll want to capture you too." I whisper at him, making him curl a lip at me in distaste.

"ATTACK!" Grindelwald screeches and all at once spells begin to shoot at our defensive shields. I feel my shields being pushed back, and I wince recasting the spell again.

"Dumbledore," Tom states calmly, and I look at him, trying to stay as calm as the mountain of stone talking to me.

"What?!" I snap, nerves getting to me.

"Grindelwald is mine." He orders, making me glare at him.

"Oh! Perfect! I'll just duel with the other four fully-trained adult wizards!!!"

I was fretting, and Tom smacks the side of my face. "Concentrate here, Dumbledore. We need to get out of this alive!"

He looked murderous, making me glare at him, taking down my wand from my hair. I point at him, walking towards the four wizards that looked ready to chop off my head and offer it up to the godly figure that stood before Tom, ready to duel him.

"Don't get yourself killed Riddle," I order at him, and he smirks, not even bothering to answer me.

We stand feet apart, waiting for the shields to be undone.

"Take your shield down at my mark," Riddle commands, voice loud and filled with concentration. I didn't bother to argue with him and stay silent, a sign of my agreement. I grip my wand tighter. Although I preferred wandless magic, I knew that going up against four adult wizards- one of them even looked like an Auror- needed more precision and more power, which I could get from a wand.

"Now Dumbledore," Tom growls, and I raise my wandless hand in the air. I could literally hear the shield crack with the clench of my fist. I bring my hand down and shove it forward, pushing my magic in a wave of power. All five of them stumble back. Tom shoots me a look of approval, and I shoot him a smirk of my own.

I begin shooting spells left and right, dodging a couple that started to come my way. A flash of red is seen in my peripheral vision, and I barely have time to dodge it before Tom stops the spell that had been coming out of Grindelwald's own wand. He stops the spell, and the sound was like a bomb exploding.

"Your fight is with me, not her," Tom growls, voice filled with such rage, that his words explode through the night of terrified screams.

I didn't have time to check if he was alright because I was waving my wand over my head like a helicopter propeller, sending stunning spells at the wizards in front of me.

The wizards jump back and then we're in a duel. My hands were moving faster than I could think and spells were radiating off my left hand at an even faster rate.

I could feel the most power coming from the Auror in front of me, and my heart thudded in a panic. One of my spells hit the man in the back, and he flies back, screaming as he crashes into the wall behind him.

The two remaining wizards and the witch Auror stare at me in silent shock. They didn't expect a kid like me to wield such power. I wouldn't be able to fight them off as long as the Auror was still fighting me.

"Abaddon!" I grit out, sweat pouring from my brow as I send out numerous spells, my hands flinging spells and shields at a dizzying rate. The Auror sends a powerful blast at my face, and I throw myself to the side, watching as it blows up, hitting the wall that I'd been standing in front of moments before.

"Shit!" I scramble back to my feet.

"I'm with you child. No one will harm a hair on that pretty head of yours." Abaddon hisses in his authoritative voice that said he wanted bloodlust.

My eyes darken, and my lips turn up into an evil smirk... Abaddon's smirk. I replace my wand in my hair and watch the confusion take over the remaining attacker's faces. They looked horrified as they stare into my eyes sockets that held no pupil anymore... just a black eye socket that swirled like a tornado if you looked in it for too long.

I let out a scream of pure rage and raise my hands. Gusts of black magic swirl around me as I send the entirety of it straight at the Auror who had dared try to hurt a child in my presence.

She cries out in panic, but her voice is muffled as the swirls of magic enter her through her nose and mouth, suffocating the Auror.

"Do NOT kill her!" I demand and Abaddon scoffs in my mind.

"Fine! But I get to chop off a limb!" He demands and I nod.

"Deal."

I make sure that the Auror passes out from lack of oxygen before retracting the spell and sending another one at the man who was watching the most powerful one of them, twitching on the floor in utter agony.

He's blasted to the side, and my lips curve into a gleeful, bloodlust smile. "Limbs!!!" Abaddon shrieks in excitement and I chuckle in his amusement at my demon. I raise my hand, muttering the spell under my breath, so I didn't mess it up, considering it was the first time I did the spell.

My eyes never left his right leg, and I held a hand out, pointing it at the limb, "Marcaval apokóvo."

The leg begins coming off when I started saying the spell, and the man begins screaming. It was the kind of scream that made your blood run cold. It pierced the brain and ignited some primeval pathway. When my spell finishes being said, the leg was entirely separated from the man's body.

"Abaddon?" I mutter, watching the scene in horror.

"THAT WAS AWESOME!!!" Abaddon shrieks in my head.

"We need to put the damn leg back on him!" I snap. "There you tried your spell!"

A spell hits the side of my arm, but Abaddon must've seen it coming because it bounces harmlessly off my body and hits the man who'd cast the spell. It'd been the Crucio curse because he started screaming in agony.

I look at the men in front of me in pity.

"Should I-" I ask, but Abaddon rages in my head.

"No. They were going to kill a kid and capture you, doing the devil knows what." He argues. I sigh.

"Fine," I mutter, knowing he was right. I raise my hand and send a healing spell at the man's stub of a leg, stopping the bleeding. "I won't let him bleed to death." I muse and walk away from the screaming.

I stop and look at Tom's duel with Grindelwald. Grindelwald definitely had the upper hand, but Tom was holding him off impressively. I rush over, eyes going back to their blue colour, and Grindelwald looks back to where I'd just defeated all his followers.

I was panting, hands on my thighs. "Physical exercise sucks." I wince, and Grindelwald lets out a scream of rage, filled with such raw power it sends a wave of magic speeding towards us.

I shriek as it hits Tom and me, head-on, and we slam into the floor.

Pain explodes in my arm, and I curse, eyes whelming up in tears.

I try to scramble to my feet, only to have Tom grab my arm, hauling me up to his side. He'd gotten up immediately after the hit.

"Ow. Ow. Ow!" I shriek, gripping his hand on mine. "Riddle!!" I cry in pain.

"Dumbledore?" He questions, eyes narrowing.

"I think the impact broke my arm." I wince, eyes filled with pained tears.

He lets out a string of curses, and he raises his wand eyes blazing. We look up, and Grindelwald was staring down us, a lethal look in his eyes. Literal blue fire surrounded the Dark wizard, and I gape in horror.

"Shit," I mutter.


	18. Mismatched Eyes

I watch in barely concealed horror as Grindelwald makes his way over towards us. "How long does it take to mend a broken bone?" I ask Tom frantic, and he looks down to stare at my arm, still in his hand. His eyes harden even more than they had been before.

"I don't know the spell." He grits out as if the words were poison on his lips.

"Wow.... the great Tom Riddle doesn't know a spell. That's a first." I exclaim, voice quivering. Tom scowls at me, his gaze lighting up in arrogance and rage.

"I never had a need for the imprudent spell." He says, voice a hiss. My eyes look up in fear, eyes flitting over to Grindelwald.

"I'm going to kill you both." The man teases, looking like a snake stalking his prey.

I wince and quickly grab my wand with my other hand. "Ferula" I hiss between my teeth and bandages spin up my arm, strapping it tightly in a splint.

I grit my teeth and pull my arm from Tom's grasp. "Be my defence. I'm offense." He orders me, and I nod in agreement.

I position myself behind Tom, and we both raise our wands, getting ready to attack the powerful Dark wizard.

Lord Voldemort was notorious for stealing the crown from Grindelwald as being the greatest Dark wizard that has ever lived. If he became more powerful than the monster that stood attacking us with a fury of deadly spells, I shudder to think how powerful Tom grew to become.

I dodged and parried, fighting in the duel like it was an intricate dance. I slam my wand down and stop a spell from narrowly smacking into myself and Tom.

I was slowing. Taking down the wizards, including a highly-skilled Auror, took a lot of energy out of me. My hands were moving slower, and my breathing was coming out harsher. I could see Tom slowing slightly as well. We'd been fighting for who knows how long.

Grindelwald was literally taunting us. He was circling us like a mountain cat, playing with its food. My hand was aching, and then Grindelwald suddenly sends two spells. I dodge a spell coming at me, but then another one hits me head-on, sending my wand flying away. He does the same to Tom, and we both glance over to the side, seeing our wands lying on the floor a couple meters away.

"I win." Grindelwald snickers, playing with his wand and looking away from us like we were just ants he could step on. I step up beside Tom, whipping out my hand.

"Expelliarmus." I snap. Grindelwald's own wand flies out of his grasp, and I grit my teeth. "Seems like the great Grindelwald can't even block a grade 2 spell." I mock him. The wizard gives me a look, filled with such rage I have to stop myself from flinching.

"Magnificent Dumbledore. Anger the man that can kill us with a single spell. Perfect." Tom snarls, making my face crinkle in rage.

"He's an utter arse! Acting like he's the king of the world." I bark, making Tom look at me in disgust.

"You fool, Dumbledore!" He hisses and flicks his hand to the side, motioning both our wands back into his palm.

He shoves my wand into my hand, and I stumble back, trying to adjust my stance. Grindelwald apparates, the sound booming in our ears, and appears in front of us, not even a meter between us. We all freeze wands out. Sometime while we'd been arguing, Grindelwald had retrieved his wand.

"Two children. Two of which can perform wandless magic." He mutters in disbelief and looks at me, meeting my terrified eyes. He had one eye coloured a dark brown that swirled in anger and curiosity, but his right eye was a pale blue. His pupil was huge, and I don't even think that it was a real eye. Nothing. No emotion in that eye. None whatsoever.

The compass, I remember.

The compass had shown me this scene. The thought had my blood running cold.

"You took down an Auror girl." He snarls, wand raising higher, and I raise mine higher, meeting his. Tom was staring at the interaction, eyes calculating and face stone hard.

"I don't want to hurt, you kids. Join me instead. Join me. Let's rid the world of filthy muggles." He cackles, and Tom's eyebrows draw upwards in thought.

"Ah, boy... I see the contemplation in your eyes." Grindelwald heaves, eyes growing excited. "You've been hurt by them too." He giggles like a madman. I draw my hurt arm in front of Tom's body, acting as a human shield.

"We'll perform our own revenge; thank you very much." I scoff at the frightening blonde man.

"Grindelwald won't touch you again, Val." Abaddon hisses in my mind, and I see the sweep of dark magic that escapes my body and wraps around my slung hand. Tom watches the magic enthralled, Grindelwald, in amazement. Abaddon's and my own black magic heal my broken hand, and I rip the sling off it, gaining instant control of it.

"You're teaching me that," Tom tells me, eyes wide.

"Right after you teach me to apparate." I counter him with a smirk, making him smirk back. We step back in tune to each other, wands up and at the ready.

"GRINDELWALD!!!!" A voice booms in utter fury. The voice ripped through the silent air and had Grindelwald smiling. It was a smile one made after seeing someone they missed dearly, and I knew exactly who that voice belonged to.

Albus Dumbledore strides towards us, his body radiating the livid rage he was feeling. I could feel how angry he was, and I was standing at least a couple hundred meters away.

Behind Dumbledore was a bunch of Aurors. At least ten strode in time to Albus's steps.

They all walk with purpose, and I hear Tom sigh in annoyance. "Took them long enough." He scowls. I find myself agreeing with him.

Grindelwald glances up at us, wearing a strange, indescribable look on his face. "Till the next time, my young pupils." He mutters and then apparates away.

"Coward." I snarl, moving quickly towards the child I'd left crying in the corner. I undo the protection spell, I'd put on her and lift the little blonde girl in my hands. Staring at her, I gape. She had one brown eye and one blue. Tom strides to my side, seeing me in my state of shock.

"What happened?" He asserts and notices what I see, only to smirk.

"Grindelwald went and knocked someone up." He gives a snicker.

"Riddle!" I scowl at him but stare at the child in my hands with uncertainty. Tom does the same, and we're silent.

"What do we do?" I ask.

"What do you mean, what do we do?? We hand the thing over to your cousin and the Aurors and be done with her and that dreadful, god-awful crying she was doing." He sneers, eyeing the kid in disgust.

"Wow. Wow! Thanks for that input. Remind me to never ask you anything again." I said, sounding extremely brittle.

"She's Grindelwald's daughter Dumbledore. What do you suppose we do?" He sneers.

"She's going to be captured and taken into custody. She looks barely five!!" I argue, making him sigh.

"Why do I even allow myself to even breathe the same air you do? You're an-"

"Imbecile? I know!" I roll my eyes at the handsome guy beside me. "I guess Albus will know what to do.... if he isn't blinded by lover's rage," I mutter the last bit to myself, making Tom whip around to stare at me in shock.

"No?" He asks in astonishment, making me blink in surprise at his tone. "Dumbledore and-" He pauses to whisper his next words. "Grindelwald?!" He interrogates me.

"Um... yeah? You didn't know?" I ask, and he glares at me.

"Does this look like the face of someone who knew his professor was involved romantically with the darkest wizard of all time?" He leers at me. No, that'd be you. I mimic in my head, and instantly, images of Tom himself and Dumbledore together enter my mind. I shiver with a sound of disgust.

"Ew. No." I shiver.

"That was incredibly disturbing Valentine," Abaddon says, disgust in his tone. "Yes, I know!" I think back at him.


	19. Confrontation of Aurors

Albus strides over to my side and grips me in a one-sided hug. "Valentine!?" He demands, and I look at my cousin.

"Hi, cousin!" I quip, and he sighs.

"Honesty, child. You could've been killed!" He demands. "Mr. Riddle?" Albus seemed confused at Tom's presence.

He makes his way to grab Tom's shoulder, looking at him from head to toe. "Are you two, alright?" He questions, eyes crinkling in worry. He grabs my own shoulder.

"Yes, professor. We are perfectly all right." Tom replies, voice cool and his demeanour cautious.

Albus looks between us and then notices the girl in my arms. "Valentine!? What happened?" He demands and then pauses, noticing her eyes. "Impossible," Albus whispers and lifts the girl from my hands.

"Grindelwald has a daughter." Albus murmurs and I look up to see him staring at the child in utter and raw agony.

"I'm so sorry, Albus." I murmur to my cousin. Albus shoots me a pained smile, giving my cheek a fond and loving tap. Tom was staring at Albus with disgusted and wary eyes. I don't think he imagined the great Albus Dumbledore to be in pain because of something as fickle as love. He had his arms crossed and looked like he wanted to be anywhere but here.

"No. No. No need for apologies. Besides, there are more prudent matters to attend to. Such as the fact that yourself and Mr. Riddle faced Gellert Grindelwald and survived." He eyes the pair of us, with unbelieving eyes.

The Aurors walk up to us, and a man with chestnut hair and kind hazel eyes looks at us, face crinkled in disbelief. "These are children Albus." The Auror implies.

"Yes, I'm very much aware that my students are children; thank you for that observation Mr.Bones." Albus states and the man gives him a haughty look.

"These kids can't have seriously faced Grindelwald and lived?! They don't even look eleven years old!" He demands, face turning red at Dumbledore's words.

"Did you not see them facing him or have you gone blind at thirty, Bones?" A witch comes up, sneering at the man beside her. The rest of the Aurors were rounding up the fallen witch and wizards that I'd kinda tortured to unconsciousness.

I couldn't help but wince when they started to haul their unmoving bodies onto stretchers. "Albus. Insane amounts of black magic were used here. Way more than any of Grindelwald's old crime scenes." She tells the professor.

My face reveals nothing.

I saw Tom staring at me from the corner of his eye, but I don't look back at him. He knew those were the wizards I'd been fighting. Tom shoves me forward, and I whip my head around to glare at him. 'Later' My eyes tell him, but he wasn't having any of that.

"Valentine fought those men." Tom declares, putting me on the spot.

"Tell them someone else came and helped you fight them off. Add some tears." Abaddon instantly says in my head. Good thing, my arm still ached like a bitch.

I let out a sob, nodding frantically. "They- They just attacked out of nowhere!" I cry, tears whelming up in my eyes at my command. "They were going to hurt the little girl, and I didn't want her to get killed." I point to the child in Dumbledore's hands.

"Some man came and helped me fight them off. But I was so scared I couldn't do anything." I wailed. "I only know basic spells!" I say, tearing up and then hold my wand for effect. "Lumos!" I say, but I don't use my magic, so nothing happens. "SEE!!" I scream wailing. "I CAN'T EVEN DO SUCH AN EASY SPELL!!!" I scream in rage, making the Aurors step back in shock. "Lumos! Lumos! LUMOS!!! LUMOSSSSS!!!" I scream over and over again.

My goal was to make them think I was traumatized, but I guess I overdid it, and they thought I'd gone utterly mad.

I let out another terrifying wail of agony, mostly because my arm was killing me. "Alright. Alright! Sweetie, do you know what the man who helped you looked like?" The woman asks softly, hands out in front of her as she tried to calm me down like she was talking to an animal.

"I DON'T REMEMBER!!!" I scream, sobbing like a madwoman.

"Valentine, dear. Calm down, please, you'll frighten the child." Albus tells me.

"But it was HORRIBLE!! I couldn't even do ONE SPELL!!" I holler in tears.

"LUMOS!!!" I screech, and my wand doesn't light up, making me let out another bawl of sorrow.

"Alright, calm down, girl!!!" Auror Bones says tersely, and I sniffle, looking up at him with innocence shining in my eyes.

"It's all right, my girl. Calm down. We're just going to go check the scans of the magic this man must've performed." He tells Albus, looking at me with a weirded out and pitying look. The witch looks at us wide-eyed, taking one look at me and taking a couple steps back when she hears my sniffles.

"I'm just- I'm just going to follow... yeah, bye." She announces, and I don't think I've ever seen someone move faster.

"Valentine, my child, everything will be fine just-" Albus starts to calm me down, but I whirl on Tom wand raised at his neck.

"I'm going to slaughter you!" I snarl. Tom looked highly amused and actually snickers.

"Why don't you continue that little scene you were doing. I truly think they were utterly terrified of you. They thought you'd gone mad. Not too far from the truth, actually." He jeers at me, not even looking twice at the wand pointed at his throat.

"Would you like me to go over there and start screaming that you were the one who duelled Grindelwald and survived while being thirteen?" I snarl back at him, making all the cruel amusement vanish off his face.

"You wouldn't dare, Dumbledore." He snaps, eyes blazing with a threat.

"Really? You don't think I'd dare?" I let out a laugh. "HEY!! TOM HERE-" I start to say, but Tom shoves me to the side, snarling.

"Dumbledore don't even-"

"Mr. Riddle. Ms. Dumbledore!" Albus roars, and we freeze whipping around to look at our professor. Albus was giving us a strange look.

"Now you will both explain to me exactly what happened after I deal with the Aurors. I am going to take you both to Aberforth. He'll help heal your injuries there." Albus orders, while still carrying the girl. She wasn't crying anymore and was looking between Tom and me with an enthralled look.

He grabs Tom's arm and the back of my jacket and apparates us all at once.

The spinning lasts a second, but then it stops, and I'm ramming into Tom, getting off balance. "Oomph." We both mutter and then start to glare at each other.

"Val?" Aberforth wonders, looking at Tom and me in confusion. "My darling girl. What happened to you both?" My cousin demands, rushing over to grab my hand and then grab Tom's shoulder, checking him over as well. I whirl around, looking for Albus. Everyone turns with my movements, and we all pause when we see Grindelwald's daughter looking up at us with frightened mismatched eyes.

"Hello," The girl waves at us, and I think my heart melts a bit.

Tom scoffs, crossing his arms. "We should've handed her over when we could've." He mutters, causing me to shoot him a cross look.

"There was an attack, Aberforth. It was Grindelwald. We were there. " I explain, making his usually warm blue eyes go stiff in anger. He rushes forward and grabs the girl in his arms, ushering us to some seats in the corner. He sets the child across us and then points at all three of us.

"Stay." He orders, voice stern, before marching away.

"We aren't animals." Tom scoffs, leaning back and crossing one of his legs over the other, relaxing into the large armchair he was in. He looked regal... like he was royalty.

"Thank you." The girl whispers, suddenly causing Tom and I to whip around to stare at the child. Her voice was high pitched and innocent. It chimed like a bell, and I let my mouth twitch upwards into a warm smile.

"Oh, course sweetheart," I say, making her beam at me. She turns her attention to Tom, looking at him with eyes filled with hope.

He ignored her completely.

I elbow him harshly, causing him to sneer at me. "Tom!?" I hiss at him.

"What!?" He hisses back, and I look between him and the little girl, gesturing towards the child with my face as discreetly as I could.

Tom lifts up his lips in a sneer, looking at the cute blonde in disgust.

He looks at me like he was saying; What on earth do you want me to tell her?!

I answer him with an impatient look of my own; Anything... something nice though!

He looks at the child, emotionless. "We didn't hand you over to Grindelwald. He would've killed you, so you are in our debt." He muses in a nasty tone.

"My dad would've killed me?" She asked, eyes brimming in tears, and I push Tom roughly, annoyance drawn all over my face.

"TOM!!" I demand.

"What!" He says, leaning back into his chair and giving me a deadpanned look, "I was nice."


	20. A Sister's Name

Aberforth comes back with a tray, carrying cups filled to the brim with warm hot chocolate. He hands one to Grindelwald's child, then handing one to Tom, and then me. Tom gives my cousin a charming look- the look he used on all of our professors to gain their instant approval. "Thank you, sir," Tom says, his voice smooth and free of all the arrogance it usually had.

"Thanks, cousin." I smile up at him. Aberforth looked enraged and highly worried.

"Valentine, introduce me to the young lads." He tells me, and I hop up.

"Oh! Right. Uh- Riddle, this is my cousin Aberforth Dumbledore. Aberforth, this is-" Tom interrupts me, standing up to shake Aberforth's hand.

"Tom Riddle. Pleasure." He addresses like he was a middle-aged man and not some thirteen-year-old with godawful scrapes and bruises across his body.

Aberforth looks at Grindelwald's daughter. "And what might your name be, young one?" He asks, eyes locked on her mismatched eyes.

"I don't have one," She states, shrugging like it was the most normal thing to say. Even Tom looked slightly intrigued by her words.

"What do you mean, you don't have a name?" I ask, making her sigh.

"No one has given me a name." She adds further, making my brow draw in confusion.

She was such an adorable little girl. Did her parents not care enough to name her?

"What did call you by, if they ever needed you?" Aberforth asks, leaning back in his own seat, eyes trained on the tiny witch in front of us.

"They called me bitch." She states calmly, and I think Tom chokes a bit on his drink.

I hit his back twice. "You alright?" I smirk in humour, causing him to glare at me.

"She called herself an incredibly crude word. She's like four." He states, glaring at me, but gazing back at the girl with barely hidden intrigue.

"I'm actually five." The girl whispers at us with a giggle.

"Still want to hand her over to Grindelwald?" I whisper under my breath, with a snort. He tilts his head, analyzing the child. I blink twice, realizing how much like a snake he really did look.

He shrugs, lifting the cup to his nose. He sniffs it as if he didn't trust whatever was in the drink. He watches me have a sip first. I didn't taste any truth serum in it this time. Thank the lord. Tom watches me for a second as if I would spontaneously combust. I scoff at his paranoid behaviour. He takes a tentative sip just after I had.

"Would've saved me a lot of trouble." He murmurs to me, answering my question, sounding almost grumpy.

"What would you like to be called?" I ask the young girl, and she looks up at me, eyes widening in hope.

"I have a choice?" She asks and my heart breaks.

She reminded me so much of myself at that moment, I had to blink.

"Names have power. Choose wisely." Tom snaps at her, giving her a warning look.

"I like your name." She admits looking at me, and I smile.

"Valentine?" I ask, and she nods, head bobbing up and down frantically.

"Can I just have your name?" She asks. making me chuckle, shaking my head.

"Make your name special. Make it unique."

Tom was scoffing to the side.

"What about Ariana?" Aberforth asks, voice terse, and I still. That was the name of his late sister. I knew that because of Ron. Everyone in the future knew the story of Ariana Dumbledore.

The girl beams. "I like that!!" She demands, pointing at him with her tiny fingers. "Can I be called Ariana?" She asks, looking around at us, hope shining in her eyes.

"Of course you can." Aberforth nods. He knew who she was. Who she was related to. What her mismatched eyes represented, yet he still allowed this girl to take the name of his sister. He was smiling softly at her.

Tom was silent, staring from Aberforth to my chilled stance, in silent analyzation. He shrugs and continues sipping his hot chocolate from his mug.

Lord Voldemort sure loved his hot chocolate.

Albus apparates into view and stares at us. "Aberforth, you still haven't healed them!? Look at the poor kids." Albus demands after a second, making Aberforth glare at his brother.

"I was healing them emotionally." He retorts and my lips curve up in a smile at that.

Albus waves his wand towards Tom and me. All my scrapes and bruises were instantly repaired. I didn't notice how much pain they'd been causing. Albus does the same to the curious Ariana. "What are those stick things?" She asked, and we all stare at her.

"I always see them, but I don't actually know what they are." She claps her hands again.

"These are wands, my child," Aberforth answers her as Albus moves to sit in the spot beside me.

"Mr. Riddle. Ms. Dumbledore. Explain the attack, please." Albus motions at us with a hand and I turn to lock eyes with Tom. He was busy drinking his hot chocolate and motions for me to talk with his head. I purse my lips, shooting him a glare.

"We were at Diagon's Alley just, you know, hanging out." I give Tom a look, and he nods absentmindedly.

"Yes. Yes. That is what we were doing." He muses and then moves to grab my half-filled hot chocolate mug. "This is magnificent hot chocolate, Mr. Dumbledore." He points to Aberforth. I gape at him. He stole my hot chocolate! The nerve of him.

"Hey! I wanted that!" I snap, but Tom shrugs.

"Didn't look like it." He sneers, continuing to drink my hot chocolate.

"Focus, Valentine." Albus chides me, and I stare at him.

"Did you not see-" I demand and Aberforth chuckles.

"I'll get you another cup after, my sweet." My cousin promises.

"We were hanging out in Diagon Alley and then out of nowhere Grindelwald and some of his followers start attacking everyone. They wanted um-" I motion to Ariana. She was drinking her own hot chocolate, not even listening to a word we were saying.

"Because of her heritage, they needed to capture her. I'm assuming she somehow escaped, and they wanted her back." I think out loud. "Anyway, I saw her being attacked, so I rushed in and helped. Tom didn't want to get involved but ended up helping me all the same." I say in a snide tone. Tom ignores me completely.

"So they all surround us. Grindelwald and his four followers. One of them was an Auror." I add, making Tom lean forward.

"May I add that she fought off all four of them, while I held off Grindelwald." He adds, causing me to give him a deadpanned look.

"No, really? I thought a ghost came out of nowhere and fought them." I snap, making him cross his legs again and give me a cruel smirk. "That's exactly what you said when you lied to that Auror." He sneers. "Should be an actor. Give up being a witch. Certainly would benefit you in the long run, seeing as you lack any real judgement." He says in a snide tone.

"I wasn't lying!! There was a man who helped me!" I lie again, gritting my teeth.

Albus wasn't paying attention to our banter and stands up, before pointing at us. Aberforth was gaping at us. "You kids fought off Grindelwald and lived?" He demands, and I nod.

"Yup. Pretty much." I muse.

"How?" Albus snaps.

Tom must've realized what a mistake we'd made and turns to me with a snide look as if saying Get us out of this one, Dumbledore.

"We are both adept at wandless and nonverbal magic," I state, quickly.

"They weren't expecting us to be so powerful, so we got a quick upper hand using their surprise against them," Tom adds smoothly, in his usual icy tone.

"Val!?" Aberforth demands, seeming proud of me. "You can do wandless and nonverbal magic?" He asks, making me blush at the indirect compliment.

"Incredible. Brightest witch and wizard of their ages." Aberforth breathes in shock, looking back and forth between myself and Tom. Albus was staring at us with an indescribable look on his face.

"And what of the black magic?" He asks. This time Tom was the curious one as he looks at me with an expectant look.

"The man. He came and helped me. I told you the truth." I said, making Albus shoot me an annoyed look.

"You also started screaming about how you couldn't perform the Lumos spell and how horrible you were at magic." He gives me a look.

I shrug. "I had to make the Aurors believe I was harmless. Those people are like detectives in the muggle world. Any chance a person may be a suspect, and they take him away for interrogation, even locking him up. I was saving a child. I did nothing wrong. The man who'd helped me must've performed the black magic, and when he saw that Grindelwald was involved, he bolted because that's what a sane person would do." I shot Tom a look. "Not duel him one-on-one."

Tom shrugs, still drinking my hot chocolate. "I wanted to see if the stories behind his powers were true." He answers as if that explained everything.

Albus looked ready to throttle the pair of us and be done with dealing with our antics. Aberforth looked highly amused, and Ariana was just gazing at Tom and me with an enthralled look. It was getting creepy.

"I don't even have any words," Albus grumbles and decides to conjure a cup of hot chocolate for his own sanity.

"Why can't you conjure me one!!" I demand insulted. Albus waves his wand, annoyed, and a cup of hot chocolate appears in my hands. I grin in delight. "Thank you!!" I quip and drink it happily.

"What are we going to do with Ariana?" I ask. At her name, the girl raises a hand and points at herself.

"Me!! That's me!" She squeals.

A look of pain crosses Albus's face of a single second before it's replaced with a soft smile.

"She can stay at Hogwarts for the time being, considering classes are out. But after we have to make arrangements." Albus thinks, but Aberforth shakes his head, face contorting into one of pain.

"After... After she can stay with me."


	21. A Duel by Any Other Name

Ariana kept following me.

Ariana kept following Tom.

I was highly concerned that the child took us on as parental figures because we'd saved her life.

"I am one second away from hexing the thing." Tom snarls, grabbing my arm to shove me to the side.

"She's a child! Don't you dare! I know how to chop off limbs. Don't make me chop yours off." I snap in a low hiss. Tom sneers at my words and points at the blonde girl who watched us, a loving look in her eyes.

She stood a few feet away, just staring at us.

"Tell me that isn't abnormal." Tom raises a hand to rub the space between his eyebrows.

"It is. You're right." I murmur and Tom nods almost frantically.

"Then let's just hex her and be done with it!" He hisses quietly, making me give him a look.

"No hexing," I warn and motion Ariana over with a warm smile.

"Sweetheart, come here," I call out, and her whole face brightens.

"So, I can throw you out of a window," Tom grumbles, and I shoot him a warning look, which he answers with a scathing one of his own.

Ariana skips up and grins up at us, innocence and love shining in her eyes. "Hi, mom! Hi, dad!" She squeals and my eyes widen in shock. I fall back, from the crouch I was sitting in and land on the floor in utter surprise.

"W-What?" I gape at the young child who had lunged to engulf me in a hug. She kissed my cheek and rushes over to Tom, hugging his legs, giggling.

Tom was frozen. I don't even think he was breathing

He wasn't moving, eyes not leaving the place where Ariana had announced us her parents just seconds before. A look of pure disgust wraps around his face, and he looks down slowly to stare at the girl grabbing at his legs.

"Dumbledore!!" He roared and whips around to glare at me, wand raised. He was pointing it at Ariana, and his eyes were enraged and filled with utter confusion. He stabs his wand towards the young child and then points it at me.

"Get this thing OFF ME!" He suddenly explodes, and I look up at him from my place on the floor.

"Riddle! I swear, I'm NOT in the mood for your irrational ANGER! Shut up and let me THINK!" I boom back.

"Irrational ANGER! I've become a father at thirteen! I think irrational anger becomes entirely rational here!" He sneers, seeming to want to kick Ariana away like a dog.

"You harm a hair on her head, and what I did to Grindelwald's followers will be child's play compared to what I will do to you." I snap, placing my head in between my knees, trying to breathe.

"So you admit it!! You did the black magic." Tom exclaims.

I felt a panic attack coming, and I was not in the mood to deal with Tom freaking Riddle.

Tom seems to realize I was panicking as much as he was because he actually stays silent.

"Deep breaths, Dumbledore." I hear Tom mutter from above me. "Don't let the fear and panic control you." He says in a smooth voice, a serious tone.

"Mommy?!" Ariana asks, voice quivering in fear. I see Tom haul her into his arms.

"Hush, child." He scolds her lightly, face hard and emotionless.

I raise my head, feeling myself pale even more. "Help me up." I squeak and Tom eyes my hand in utter scorn.

"I'm holding a child." He turns away, and I swallow hard, lying down on my back. I cover my eyes and breathe.

"You alive?" Tom jeers.

"Barely." I croak and sit up slowly.

I look at Tom and almost laugh in amusement. Ariana had her head on Tom's shoulder and her tiny arms wrapped around his neck. I barely stifle a scoff of laughter. If it hadn't been for the utterly grossed out look on his face and the expression that made me think he was one second away from actually throwing her out the window, I'd have thought he was her actual dad.

"Ariana? Why do you think I'm your mom?" I ask, making Tom nod quickly.

"And what gave you the utterly absurd idea that I am your father." Tom spits the word out like poison.

Ariana gives a yawn and shrugs. "You cared for me when no one else did." She murmurs, and I blink. Tom blinks too.

"I'm speaking to Professor Dumbledore. This is absolutely ridiculous." Tom sniffs as I stand up slowly to meet his gaze.

I nod my agreement at him, and he literally throws Ariana in my arms. "Follow." He orders us. Both Ariana and I stare at each other.

"Is dad always this mad?" Ariana asks, and I nod.

"Yup pretty much." I muse walking after Tom.

"I'm not that young child's father!" Tom demands as all three of us sat around a highly amused Albus.

"Well, Mr.Riddle, no one is forcing you to be a father to young Ariana. The child has just begun to call you by another name. You can choose to ignore the meaning that the name gives you or accept it. The decision is yours to make." Albus tells him, and I'm gaping along with Tom.

"You expect us to be parents?" I ask industriously, making Albus shrug.

"If that is what you wish to be, then become it."

He was seriously pissing me off, and I knew Riddle felt the same. "We are both thirteen." Tom deadpans like he couldn't believe Dumbledore was this daft.

"You've been marvellous help through all this. Really cousin." I snap, sarcastically.

He shrugs. "A good parent isn't defined by mere age. It's by their actions." Albus continues. He actually expected us to be parents to this traumatized five-year-old. I couldn't even take care of myself. Now I had to care for another human?!

"I don't know why we are even debating this? This is preposterous." Riddle snarls, and I nod.

"Albus. We are kids. It'll be children raising a child. I don't understand what you're asking us to do." I stay as calm as I could.

Albus shrugs. "And I don't know what you're asking me to do." He replies, having us all go silent.

Ariana was in the corner, watching us with a happy grin on her face. I couldn't help but send her one of my own smiles.

Tom marches out of the room.

"Ariana, stay here sweetheart," I say and race after him.

"Riddle!" I yell, but he ignores me, marching away.

I sprint after him. "Riddle!!!" I demand and almost ram into his back. He whirls around eyes seething in pulsing black and red anger. I take a step back instinctively. He was utterly frightening, his gaze looking like he wanted to rip me apart.

"You did this." He snarls, and I realize his wand was aimed at my neck.

"Riddle. Riddle calm down. She's just a young girl!" I exclaim, honestly stunned at how he was acting.

"I don't care." He seethes. "You've been nothing but a thorn in my side since the day you've arrived here. I despise you. I would rather you jump out of this castle window and break every bone in your body then have you talk to me for another second!" He roars and sends the reducto spell at me nonverbally.

I flew back and hit a wall, parts of it actually falling off and almost hitting me. I let out a groan of utter pain but the throbbing anger I felt....the firing rage filled me, and I was sending a spell straight at Riddle's back. It was the same spell he'd thrown at me, and he meets the same fate I had.

He hits the wall with a loud explosion and then strolls away from the debris like Jesus coming back from the dead. His eyes were trained on me and mine on him. I realize we'd made our way to the Hogwarts Courtyard, and we stood dead center.

"Is this how you want to play, Dumbledore?!" He seethes, and I raise a brow.

"Bring it, Riddle!" I sneer at him. "You're acting like an absolute child!" I demand as we begin to circle each other. Each one of us acting like a predator when, in fact, we were both prey. Prey to our anger and prey to our darkness.

We let it fester inside of us like a disease.

I wasn't duelling Tom Riddle at the moment.

I was duelling his future.

Only Lord Voldemort was left standing.

I was so angry, tears of rage spilt down my cheeks.

"Ariana is more mature than you are!" I snap at him, and that was the last straw because he lets out a scream of pure malice attacking me with every ounce of power he had. He had a lot.

I was dodging and blocking with my hands, using my wand to send equally powerful spells in his direction.

"Stupefy!" I shout, and Riddle deflects it instantly, smirking.

"That all you got, Dumble?" He hisses, sending a spell my way, "Reducto." He shouts, causing me to roll to the side to risk my head blowing up.

It explodes, shattering the statue behind me. "Avis!" I shriek, and my wand lifts to the air, conjuring a flock of birds from its tip. "Oppugno!" I direct all the birds at Riddle who snarls in anger at my attack. The flock of birds zip towards Riddle like bullets.

In a fit of rage, he waves his wand like a sword slashing it in front of him a serpent of fire shoots out and begins roasting all my poor birds. My lip curls in a sneer, and when I realize the massive snake of fire was headed in my direction, I match Tom's curse with one of my own. Whipping my wand around, an enormous ring of fire erupts from my wand, I whirl it around and send it straight at Tom's damned snake.

I was really starting to hate snakes. "YOU UTTER CHILD!!!" I shriek.

The serpent slams into the flames and I scowl, seeing it be engulfed by the flames I'd made. Riddle sends another spell at me, seeing his serpent go down. "Childish!? I'll show you childish!" He screeches and starts sending a flurry of spells. Some of them were really dark. I couldn't see where he was and was dodging spells blindly.

Letting out a scream of pure livid anger, I raise my arms up, making the flames blast upwards in a curving streak of fire, and I slam my fists into the floor, sending the fire out sideways in every-which direction.

Tom uses the Partis Temporus spell, and I meet his eyes from the small section of parted flames he stood in. "Weak Riddle. So utterly weak." I taunt him.

We both attack at the same time.

The strength of our powers blow up the tiles of stone we stood on. We both screamed, and everything was blowing around us like a hurricane. Fire zipped around us in a whirlwind of death. Magic sparks of red burst from our fingers and wands, neither of us allowing ourselves to break it. Our arrogance and pride working in union against us.

"Let meeeee finish him!!" Abaddon yells in my head, but I refuse.

"This is MY fight!"

"Technically, we are the same person." He was pouting

I didn't answer Abaddon. I was too busy trying to not be annihilated by Tom Riddle.

We look at each other and then an outburst of power we'd been battling for control of, shoots upwards and erupts into a thousand magical fragments.

A reminder to anyone that too much power could destroy.

We were panting and circling each other, the hurricane of magic whipping around us. It was so powerful, my ponytail becomes undone, and my mane of black hair whips around freely.

We point our wands again at the same time but freeze at the person who'd just strolled in-between our duel like he was taking a damn morning walk.

Albus looked in-between us with furrowed brows. "ENOUGH!" He thunders, his voice causing the very ground we stood on to shake.

Our wands whipped through the air and slammed into Albus's hand, without him having to even move. The fire was put out with a snap of his fingers. With another wave of his hand, all the destruction and chaos we'd caused was in array.

"My office, NOW!!" He booms and walks back in the direction he came in.

I wanted to cry. I could've killed Tom. I could've killed him had been done with all of this utter madness. Lord Voldemort would've been dead, and everything would be right in the world.

I wanted to go home! I wanted to go back so badly it ached. I wished for Luna, Harry and Ettie so much my hands begun to shake.

"WHY ME!!" I screamed at Albus's back. Albus pauses in his steps, freezing in place. "WHY COULDN'T YOU HAVE SENT SOMEONE ELSE! WHY COULDN'T YOU HAVE DONE IT!" I shriek into the night. No one could hear me except Albus and Tom.

Tom was staring at me like I'd gone mad.

"I refuse!" I snap, my eyes blazing. "I REFUSE!!" I scream so loud, my vocal cords ache.

"All you ever do is cause pain.. you know that, Albus." I accuse him, marching up to meet my cousin. "LOOK AT ME!" I explode, in a voice that was not my own. Abaddon had come up to full power in my anger and was causing a tornado of black magic to swirl around me as I spoke. My eyes were flickering in-between Abaddon's and my own like a broken recordset.

Dumbledore whirls around to see Abaddon and me in our full glory. He pales and looks at a frozen Tom Riddle behind me. He hadn't moved from our duelling spot from moments ago, but he was staring at us. I knew what his gaze would look like. It'd be calculating. So damn calculating.

It wasn't me that was speaking right now... It was my pain.

"YOU HURT, everyone! Everyone! ALL YOU CARE ABOUT IS YOURSELF YOU SELFISH BASTARD!" I scream, bending down, clutching my stomach as if the words caused me internal torment.

I walk up to him and look him dead in the eyes, "I should've been sent back in time to kill you instead."

And with those words, Abaddon and I walk away.


	22. Never Let Go

I found myself standing in front of grandmama Helga's portrait. She wasn't there, and I found my heart sinking to the deepest bottomless pit it could fall into.

I look around for Godric, but I couldn't find him either, so I just ask the painting adjacent to my grandmama's.

"Would you know where Helga Hufflepuff is?" I ask in a kind voice. The man in the painting eyes me for a second.

"Oh! You're the granddaughter! No, my dear. Helga isn't in Hogwarts at the moment." He tells me, making me sigh. I give him a sad smile and an understanding nod.

"Could you tell her I came for a visit? And that I really miss her?" I ask. The man's eyes brighten, and he nods.

"Wish someone still missed me." He admits. I see the sadness creep on the middle-aged man's expression.

"What is your name?" I ask, knowing because I read the description under his portrait, but wanting him to tell me.

He smiles up at me, eyes shining as if he knew what I was doing. "Vindictus Viridian. A pleasure to make your acquaintance, my dear." He grins up at me.

"My name is Valentine Dumbledore. Its an honour, sir." I reply, and he tilts his head at my last name. He thankfully doesn't comment on it.

"What has caused you so much distress, my dear child?" He asks. "Maybe I can be of some assistance?" He asks.

"Talk to me! Why would you talk to someone you just met!" Abaddon demands, getting jealous. I raise a brow at my demon. "You're MY human! I refuse." He hisses, and I can imagine him crossing his arms.

"You want to talk about girly feelings?" I ask the demon in disbelief. He's silent for a second.

"Sure..." He cringes, making me laugh.

"I'll always love you most, Abaddon," I tell my demon, causing him to melt a little in my mind.

"I love you as well, my little witch." He tells me in a loving coo.

I shrug, leaning on the stair railing, looking at the portrait.

"I just- It's insanely complicated, and I don't wish to trouble you," I say, cringing. Vindictus grins at me, kindness shimmering in his expression.

"Nonsense child. This is the most excitement I've had in a while." He admits, making me smile at him.

I decide to be vague, not trusting the almost too silent halls.

"What would you do if you were suddenly taken away from everything you ever knew and put in someplace utterly different. You had one task to accomplish in this time, and you have no idea how to do it." I question.

Professor Viridian stares at me for a second and then points at me. "Who cares what I would do.... what would you do?" He puts me on the spot. I glare at him.

"I asked you for a reason!" I demand, and he gives a sharp laugh.

"No. No dear.... you asked me to validate what you already know. You know what to do....you're just a coward." He taunts, and I scowl.

"I am no coward." I snap, but he scoffs.

"You come crying to your grandmother whenever you have a problem! Go deal with them yourself like a grownup should. Hufflepuff, aren't you... I knew a couple of brave Hufflepuffs.. don't think you're one of them." He mocks.

I grit my teeth.

His tone turns kind. "Go face your troubles, head-on girl. Face them with your wand out and your head high. You are deadly powerful if you are a descendant. Use that. Use that cunning wit of yours. You're also dreadfully kind. Kind people are never associated with weakness. People with none of it may think kind people are weak, but it's the most powerful weapon one can wield." He scolds me.

"Don't ever make that mistake. You are kind. Those yellow robes are proof of that. Sometimes it takes great strength to smile and say kind words. So go and show those utter bastards your beautiful smile. Show them nothing can make you fall down in defeat."

I gape at the man in front of me and then smile slowly, making him grin at me. "Ah. There it is. There is that lovely smile." He sighs, making my heart warm at his words.

"Thank you." I breathe, realizing how utterly right he was.

"You're welcome, child." He gives me a look, and when I turn around to walk back into the Great Hall to give Albus and Tom another piece of my mind, Professor Viridian calls me back.

"Valentine, sweetie...." He calls, and I turn back to see his grim face. "Too often we underestimate the power of a touch, a smile, a kind word, a listening ear, an honest compliment or just the smallest act of caring....all of which have the potential to turn a life around." He states, giving me a knowing look.

I pale.

Nodding at the professor slowly, I move to leave. "Do you UNDERSTAND ME! Valentine!" He hollers, and I spin around.

"Yes. I understand, Professor. Thank you." I repeat for again, my head whirling.

This time when I leave, he doesn't stop me.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I stroll to the Great Hall, and I march over to Tom. He was reading. Thank the lord for Winter break; otherwise, everyone would think we were completely bonkers.

I slam my fist down on the table and meet his highly annoyed eyes from across the table.

"You ever disrespect Ariana like that again, I will have your throat." I threaten, making him stand meeting me head-on.

"Don't tempt me." He snarls, and I meet his black eyes, noticing how utterly void of emotion they were.

Too often, we underestimate the power of a touch, a smile, a kind word, a listening ear, an honest compliment or just the smallest act of caring.

I march around the table and stare at him. "You need to learn to believe that not everyone here is going to hurt you," I tell him, and he blinks.

"I could say the same thing to you." He says, voice cool and composed.

"I'm trying to," I admit. "I don't know what I'm doing half the time....but I'd like to say I'm a bit better at it than you." I muse.

"Wonderful. You're all sunshine and daisies, are you? Go eat a buttercup and be done with it." He snarls.

"I'm going to teach you how." I blurt out suddenly. That seems to get his attention, and he looks at me with a scorn.

"What are you talking about, you madwoman?" He dictates, but I'd made my decision. Before Riddle even knew what was going on, I lunged forward and wrapped my arms around his neck and hugged him.

He froze in place.

I froze in place too.

Just the smallest act of caring......

I would care about this tortured soul. I'd show him, he had someone genuine at his side. I would care for Ariana too. Both of them.

I hugged him tighter and buried my head in his shoulder.

"I understand what you went through, Tom. I understand exactly what you went through.... maybe even more." I whisper, knowing he could hear me because he stiffens even more.

"I'm here for you... Always. You may be the most annoying person I've ever met... " I chuckle at that. "....but I'm here for you. I'll find a way to get you out of that orphanage. Just like I escaped... I'll help you escape too. I'm not going to leave you there." I tell him in a choked voice. "You have my word," I promise.

I untangle myself from him and step back, watching him exceedingly concerned.

He was still frozen in place. It was like he'd never been hugged before. He was staring at me, eyes wide.

I looked into his eyes, but there was nothing there to see. An endless pit of black that swirled like ink. I start forward again and grab his still-frozen face, in-between my hands.

I stare at him. I stare into his eyes, letting him see my pain so he could show me his.

I pushed past the dark... looking desperately in the bottomless pool of darkness. I was drowning in the black pools, but I swam in them... deeper and deeper until I hit rock bottom.

Such pain. Such sorrow.

His eyes were filled with the screams of millions as they compared drastically to the depths of Tartarus. They held captive thousands of souls, yet I saw not one of them reflected in his eyes.

I inhale deeply and just like that whatever spell had been cast on us breaks, and we stumble apart.

"You-" He looked pained. "D-Don't ever touch me again. Stay away from me."

Such fierce pride and arrogance could be seen now in those two voids he called eyes. I knew he'd never accept my help. He was falling fast, and he was falling in deep.

He needed a life jacket, he needed help, he needed it so badly.

His pride was going to drown him.... like it drowned the millions of wizards before him.

I would be that lifejacket. I'd let him grab on me, dragging me down so he could breathe. I'd drown to let him float.

I felt the deep waters engulf my soul, and I look at him harshly.

I grab his hand, intertwining our fingers. "Never." I hiss, and as one, just like that, we can breathe.


	23. Invisible Affections

Tomorrow the students would return from the Winter holiday. It was New Years today. Tomorrow my friends would return from a long break, and I'd be confined to Hogwarts till the summer. I needed to get my goblet back today.

It was today or wait another five months. I open my compass, and I see the image of a house staring back at me. "Cool. So I actually find the house this time." I mutter and grab my backpack before rushing over to the library. I needed to check the steps of the invisibility charm, I was going to use.

I walk in-between the shelves and shelves of books before I come upon the one I was looking for. It was an invisible book. I grin in delight and reach up to grab it. The second my hand comes in contact with it, it comes into view. The brown leather and buckles that adorned it made the book look old and ancient.

I flip it open to the page I had memorized. I read through it silently, humming to myself as I rechecked all the steps of doing the spell. "Ouuuu Invisibility!" Abaddon grins in my head.

"Yup... A very complicated charm." I answer him under my breath.

"Nothing is too complicated for me." He proclaims, and I roll my eyes highly amused.

"Yes, of course. The magnificent Abaddon can do everything." I reply.

"Can you do this spell?" He asks me, and I nod absentmindedly.

"Yeah." I muse.

"Who are you talking to, Dumbledore?" A voice demands and I whirl around to find Tom staring at me blankly.

"Myself," I answer quickly and then regret it instantly.

He looked at me like was some psychopath. Says the murderous killer...

"You were talking to yourself?" He rephrases his question, eyebrow raised mockingly.

"Yup. You heard me the first time." I muse, flipping through my book.

"I wish I hadn't." I hear him grumble, but I ignore him.

"Invisibility charm?" He sneers, suddenly appearing behind me, and I flinch back only to smack into his chest.

"Yes. Must you question everything? I was told you knew how to read." I jeer back at him. He scoffs and swipes the book from my hands. Breathing in a steadying breath, I give him a look. "Do you mind?"

He nods his head. "Yes, I do. Leave." He barks, making me glare at him.

"You utter toad!!" I snarl and make a grab at the book only to end up smacking headfirst into another bookshelf.

I stumble back and grab my head with a wince, proceeding to smack the hell out of Tom Riddle's shoulder.

He grabs my hand and pulls me towards him. "This is for breaking into that Smith's house, isn't it?" He muses, and I rip my hand away.

"No." I lie, and he looks at me in disgust.

"I can hear the lie in your voice Dumbledore." He scoffs and I roll my eyes at that.

"Yes. Fine." I state, and he nods.

"Wonderful. I'll be accompanying you."

I look at him wide-eyed.

"What about Ariana?" I ask, and he looks confused.

"Who?"

His words make me smack his chest. "Ariana!" I hiss and point at the little girl who had followed Tom into the library. She waved at us adorably.

I wave back at her and then elbow Tom in the chest. "Oomph." He groans and sends me a lethal glare.

"Wave at her!" I mutter, glaring at him. His face wears an utterly grossed out and arrogant expression as he sends a tense wave at the child. Her eyes light up in delight.

"She really does think we're her parents," I grumble, making Tom scoff.

"Utterly disgusting."

"Doesn't it make you wish you had loving parents?" I ask silently, and he's quiet for once. He looks at me, staring at the way I looked at Ariana.

"Don't tell me you've come to care for the thing?" I hear him ask in detest.

I look at him and send him a sad smile, "She's beautiful." I whisper.

"If you start sobbing, I'm going to curse you."

His emotionless tone has me scoffing, "I see through your words, Riddle. I see the pain in your stance. The pain in your eyes."

"You're blind."

"Maybe... But maybe you've grown blind too." I answer his harsh words, with kind ones of my own. I was growing too accustomed to him.

"You didn't answer the question?" I tell him, and he snorts.

"Maybe there's a reason for that." He answers, voice harsh.

"How'd you know I lived in an orphanage?" He asks suddenly, and I turn to meet his conflicted eyes. I send him a smile that told him how harmless I was.

"I could tell. I could tell from the second you found out I was an orphan myself."

He meets my gaze, head-on, chin tilted up in defiance and pride. "I don't need your help." He scorns me, talking about our discussion yesterday.

I smile again.

"You might not need it... but you want it," I say softly.

"I want nothing to do with you." He snarls, moving to grip my forearms threateningly. I meet his gaze cooly.

"Do you wish to stay there?! To stay in that dreadful place." I snap, pointing a finger at his chest. He takes a step back, and I take one forward.

"Do you want to stay alone?! Being heartless might be all fun and games at first....but it'll get old and dull real fast. It's lonely." I accuse.

"Maybe, just maybe I want to be alone." He snarls, almost yelling the words, stepping up to meet me..... I shake my head.

I grab his hand, intertwining our fingers just like I had yesterday. He tried to rip his hand out of my grasp, but I keep my hand firm, stepping even closer to him. My eyes revealed nothing as I gave him the softest, most gentle smile I could muster.

"No one wants to be alone Tom,"

"Hi, Dad!!!" Ariana interrupts us appearing to our left. We don't move from our current staring contest. "Hi, Mom!!" She waves at me.

"Hi, sweetie." I greet the adorable girl beside me, eyes not moving away from Tom's.

"Dad?" She waves her tiny fingers at Tom. She jumps on the table to our left.

"Careful!" I scold her, still unmoving.

She proceeds to wave her hands in front of Tom's face. "Dad? Dad, you okay?" She seemed really concerned.

"Remove your hands at once." He seethes, making her clap her hands in joy.

"Mom! Dad's okay!! He's threatening me again!" She squeals as if that was the most fantastic thing in the world.

"You've traumatized the kid." I scowl at him. He looked highly amused.

"Isn't she, our kid?" He sneers and steps back, eyeing Ariana and me with a weird look in his eyes. His words make me swallow the huge lump that had formed in my throat.

"We hit Smith's house tonight. Five o'clock. Not a second late, Dumbledore. Same place as last time." He orders me before turning to look at Ariana. She waves at him again. He lets out a string of curses, making me give him a look of disapproval.

He points at me, looking at Ariana. "Your turn with her now." He tells me, and I sigh. Walking over to Ariana, I pluck her down from the table and hold the tiny child in my hands. She lets out a huge yawn, and I'm instantly concerned.

"You had her follow you all across Hogwarts again!" I demand, making him shrug, looking at her with a distasteful look.

"Peculiar little thing. She hasn't given up on following me around. She's highly resilient. She followed me around Hogwarts four times." He shrugged as if the concept of tiring out a five-year-old in that way was entirely reasonable.

"Just go and memorize the damn spell." I shoo him away. I see the look in his eyes and nod at him. "That's right! I'm actually smart. I know why you grabbed it from me." I roll my eyes and watch as he sends me another sneer.

"I'm just refreshing my knowledge of invisibility." He defends himself, giving me a cold look. His whole demeanour was terrifying. I don't know how Ariana managed to adore him to the extent that she had made him her father.

"Yes, of course, you are, Riddle. You might want to refresh your knowledge on how to interact with kids while you're at it. There are plenty of books around!!" I yell at his retreating back.

He'd begun to leave the second I mentioned kids. The act has me grinning in bemusement.


	24. A Golden Cup

I leave Ariana in Albus's care. "Bye, mommy!!" She squeals and I stare at her in amusement. "I'll see you later, yeah?" I ask, and she nods her head frantically.

I had grown fond of the little child, and although having her call me mom was still strange, she was adorable all the same.

Albus gives a look, making me raise a brow at him. "You aren't going to comment on what I told you at that time?" I ask, and he sighs, shaking his head.

"We all say things when we're angry Valentine. I don't blame you for letting your emotions get the best of you." He answers, making me purse my lips.

I'd meant every word then.

I still did.

Albus was nothing more than an elderly man who wielded too much power. He was a manipulator. A god damn good one. He rivalled with Tom's abilities, actually.

I swallow my pride, wanting to get back on his good side. No matter how hard I tried, something didn't sit right with me about this whole thing.

"I'm sorry," I state in a loud voice, making him tilt his gaze up only to smile at me.

"All is forgiven and forgotten, cousin." He teases, making me smile at him. I whirl around to walk away, but his voice stops me in my tracks.

"Give Tom my regards."

My brow furrows in confusion, but I walk out of the office.

Strolling to the courtyard, I see Tom waiting for me. I fling my jacket on, wiping my hands on my jeans.

"You're late." Tom sneers. I curl my lip in distaste.

"By one minute!?" I demand. He doesn't even look at me, his tone icy cold.

"Late is late, Dumbledore."

He starts to walk away from the Hogwarts grounds, and I scowl, rushing to follow him. "I want to learn how to apparate," I tell him, and he glances at me with a sharp look.

"You?" He scoffs. "There's no way. I am perfection itself. You can't attempt to mimic perfection." His voice was like silver, a knife cutting through everyone and everything it saw.

"Try me."

He stares me up and down, making me give him a stink eye. "You really are tremendously hideous." He curls his lip in loathing. I could feel the moisture forming at the back of my eyes. His words cut deep, but I smile at him.

"Teach me to apparate. We kill two birds with one stone."

"I'd just curse them." He retorts, eyes dismissing me.

"It's a metaphor!"

"I am going to enjoy seeing you splinched." He taunts, making me raise a brow.

"That'll happen because you made such an awful teacher." I taut back. He whips around to send me a murderous look, his face like porcelain.

"Dumbledore, I'm going to say this once... you mess this up, it'll be because of your utter mediocrity which will be highly amusing on my behalf."

I continue looking at him, so he continues, "The most important part is to remember the Three D's: Destination, Determination and Deliberation."

"So, I just picture myself going to the destination I want?" I ask him, eyes furrowing in concentration. He nods, grabbing my elbows, causing me to grip his forearms.

"Precisely. Project your magic outwards and then imagine yourself in Diagon Alley. I don't want you apparating to a place you've never seen before on your first time. You'll get us both killed."

"You're accompanying me?!" I almost screech, and he sneers at me. "Yes, so if you splintch me, I will burn your organs from the inside out." He says in that same calm voice.

"I teach you to apparate, and you show me how to heal broken bones in the same way you did during our fight with Grindelwald." He announces, making me nod.

"Don't mess up." He orders again.

"Thanks," I say, being sarcastic. "Those words of confidence are going to help me so much." I snap at him.

"Keep concentrating continually upon your destination," He orders me, and I close my eyes to concentrate harder.

"Move, without haste or second thought, but with deliberation." I hear his cool voice ring in my ears.

"Abaddon?" I think making my demon come forward.

"Nothing dreadful will happen when I'm with you, young one." He tells me, making my racing heart slow. "You and the Riddle boy are safe as long as I'm here."

I grip Tom's arms tighter, my relief plausible.

"Any day now." Tom drawls in a bored tone.

It hits us both without any warning. My magic slams into us, and we apparate. It felt like all the other times, I'd apparated.... like I was being squeezed into a tube too small.

My concentration never falters once and then all too quickly, we slam to the ground.

Diagon Alley.

We'd made it.

I open my eyes in a millisecond. I looked Tom up and down, checking for any missing limbs or body parts, then do the same to me.

"I did it?" I breathe, backing away from Tom in amazement. "Oh my god!! I DID it!!" I screech and jump up and down like an excited child.

I decided to check my abilities on my own and apparate a couple feet away. "WOW!!" I scream, twirling in delight. I rush up and engulf a startled Tom in a hug. "Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!!! I did it!!!" I squeal, jumping off him and doing a mini dance.

"Of course you did. I'm a marvellous teacher." He sniffs, but he was eyeing me in amusement. His face was cold like stone. I realized that to anyone watching, they'd think Tom was an emotionless asshole.

Which he was.

Wholeheartedly agreed with that.

But he did have his humane moments. The moments when his eyes revealed what his expressions didn't.

I'd started to get really good at distinguishing his emotions.

"That you are! But I am a stupendous student, as well. I am amazing!" I boast, flicking my ponytail back in pride.

"Perhaps, but it most definitely is because of me. You did nothing." He scoffs, making me give him a cross look.

"Wait?!" I state, pointing at him. "You said you can apparate to places that you don't even know the appearance of," I indicate, and he shrugs.

"Yes. What of it?" He muses, strolling to grip the notebook I had in my arms. He flipped through it, ignoring my gaping gaze.

"That's impossible," I state, and he scoffs, a sneer forming on that perfect face.

"What would you know of the impossible? Impossible is just a big word thrown around by small men who have no power whatsoever. They prefer to live in the disgusting world they already live in than to explore the power they have to change it."

I'm silent for a second and then move to flip the notebook to the page he was looking for. "The address." I raise my brows at him. He disregarded me entirely, reading the address with a focused look on his face.

"Alright. Hold on." He orders, offering me his hand to grab. I grip his arm tightly, and then he apparates us away from the corner in Diagon Alley, I'd apparated us to in the first place.

We appear outside a house. I realize that apparating didn't make me nauseous anymore. I guess they were right. The more you did it, the more used to it you became.

I notice Tom peering at me expectantly. I give him a confused look. He scowls, motioning to my hand, still gripping his own. I let him go instantly, and he brushes off his hand like I was grime.

"Any plan, Dumbledore?" He sneers at me, and I look around the dark street and pull out my wand.

"Of course, Riddle." I sneer back.

I wave my wand in the air and shove my back magic forward with my arm.

My revealing spell showed me no traps, but my black magic did. "She dabbles in the dark arts." I muse, amused at this.

Tom stares at me. "How do you know this?" He demands, and I shrug. "You have your secrets... I have mine." I answer vaguely.

"You know all my secrets!!" He sneers, making me give him a teasing look. "Do I?" I grin.

"You know quite a lot of Dark Magic." He concludes, making me roll my eyes. "Really? Did the black mist I conjured during our duel give it away?" I mock him.

There was only one trap on the door. We walk towards said door, and I look at Tom. "Can't you apparate us inside?" I ask him, and he shakes his head.

"I can't. There's an Anti-Disapparition Jinx cast on it. I don't want to risk it." He answers, making me purse my lips. Tom waves his wand, and I look up at him, expectantly. He shakes his head when nothing happens, indicating that his own revealing spell told his nothing was wrong.

My black magic comes back, and I intercept it, sucking it back into me like air. "There's poison on the doorknob," I state and scoff.

Tom looked like he couldn't control the impressed gleam that appeared in his eye. "Ouuu, the great Tom Riddle impressed." I tease him with a grin.

He instantly glares at me.

"Any jinxes?" He asks, curious, and I nod. "One on the back door and multiple on the windows." I retort. "I think Hepzibah Smith thought the poison would be enough to ward off intruders," I answer. I lean down to stare at the doorknob.

"Don't smell it." Tom, hauls me back by my ponytail, making me wince.

"Ow!" I snap, smacking him lightly.

"It obviously affects by touch." He tells me, and I give him a deadpanned look. He sighs and points to it. "Most poisons that effect through touch can also be dangerous if inhaled. We don't know what it is, so stay away." He demands.

"How do we get in?" I murmur to myself, and my eyes light up, in thought. I grab Tom's hand and allow my black magic to engulf the pair of us. He tries to get away, but I whisper the spell under my breath over and over again. Before stepping through the door, I haul Tom with me into the house.

"What in the world was that?!" His eyes were wide and I smile at him, releasing my hold on him.

"A spell for walking through inanimate objects," I whisper, putting a finger to my lips. "Hush," I order the guy who eyes me in intrigue.

"Should we use the invisibility spell?" I hiss at Tom, and he purses his lips before he shakes his head.

"I don't think it's necessary. The woman is obviously asleep." He drawls in a hushed voice.

"Come on," I whisper back, but before I could take a step, he grabs my shoulder, stopping me. He waves his wand once, casting a silencing charm around us.

Smart.

I'll give him that.

I wave my hand again, checking for any more booby traps, but we were in the clear. "We'd make amazing criminals," Tom notes voice cool, making me scoff. Oh, if only he knew how right he was. He'd be an impeccable villain in the future.

We walk into her house, and we pause. There were relics everywhere. This woman had a severe problem.

"Oh. Wow." I gasp.

"Well, at least we know we have the right house," Tom grumbles and moves to the side, something catching his eye. I look around, and my eyes instantly see my goblet. My eyes widen in excitement, and I rush forward to look at my cup.

A wave of nostalgia hits me. I feel myself remembering the first time I held this cup in my hands.

"This... This is yours." Grandma Helga says, eyes kind as she hands me the goblet. I stare at the cup in my hands, looking at her in confusion.

"Grandma, what's this?" I ask, and she gives me an amused laugh.

"That is a magical cup. It's a cup that I made when I was still founding Hogwarts with Salazar, Rowena and Godric." She explains.

"So, why are you giving it to me?" I ask her, staring at the precious item in front of me. "This is too much responsibility. What if I lose it?" I cringe at her. She grins at me as if my words were all the confirmation she needed to hand it over to me entirely.

"You are one of my descendants. An Evans that was once a Hufflepuff." She proclaims.

"This is as rightfully yours as it had been when I gave it to the Smiths." She explains to me.

"This is filled with dark magic grandmama," I whisper, sensing the power thrive in my palms, and her eyes crinkle in sadness.

"Yes, it's infused with the darkest of dark magic."

"Its powers won't function anymore." She continues. "Had it been cleansed, it would've granted the holder immense powers if she or he was worthy for them." She continues, staring at her creation in sadness.

"What happened to it?" I ask her, and she sneers her next words,

"Voldemort, my child. Voldemort happened to it."

It was precisely the same way I remembered it. A small golden cup with two finely wrought handles. A badger stood in the center, a proud look in its' eyes. The badger was my house's symbol. There were a few jewels that protruded from the sides. Gemstones that hadn't been there before when grandma Helga had first given it to me.

I reach for the cup and then Abaddon's voice stops me. "CHILD!" He booms and I jump back as a huge ass cage appears out of nowhere and cages the goblet inside it. The cage had spikes adorning it. Another second and my hands would've been chopped off.

Sirens.

I whip around to see Tom holding a necklace. "Tom!!!" I shriek over the sirens, and he looks at me with an annoyed sneer.

"This-" He holds up Salazar Slytherin's locket in his hands. "-belongs to me." He snarls. How'd I know that was Salazar's locket? The huge freaking sign that stood under it said so. I take out my wand, and I blast away the dark magic protecting my goblet before I blast away the cage.

"Reducto!" I demand, and it flies away in debris.

Lunging forward, I grab the goblet and stumble back. A vision slams into my brain the second I touch it.

I was grinning in glee as I ran up to a mysterious person only to engulf him or her in a hug. I heard someone laughing. It was a husky laugh that rang tingles down my spine.

My vision disappears in an instant, and I'm being pulled by my ponytail again by Tom.

I realize he'd saved my head from being blast off.

In a millisecond, I wave my hand, concealing our faces with dark magic.

"You disgraceful thieves." Hepzibah Smith stood, wand drawn. "Give me back my relics." She snarls.

Tom and I share a look before our wands were drawn as well.


	25. Screaming Through Flames

It was a two against one, and the odds were clearly in our favour. We were two exceedingly skilled students. We could take an old lady.

A roar could be heard in the next second.

Two huge panthers appear out of nowhere, rounding the corner and snarling at us.

My heart stops.

Okay, so the odds weren't really in our favour.

I look at Tom with fear in my eyes, and he shakes his head, giving me a look that said Keep it together, you fool.

He'd seen me camouflage our faces, but he knew our voices were not.

"Show yourselves!" Hepzibah demands. "Show yourselves, you COWARDS!!" She roars, making me eye her warily.

She was an obese old lady. She was huge, and I was incredibly bewildered at her quick movements. She wore an elegant ginger wig that looked utterly ridiculous. Her pink robes were hanging loosely, and I think I threw up a little in my mouth. "Good lord." Abaddon groans in my head. "She could cover herself a bit more." He sounded ready to hurl. Her breast peeked out of her robes, dangling loosely, hence showing her lack of knickers.

Tom looked traumatized. The poor lad looked at her repulsed.

"Attack them!" She orders her panthers and Tom looks at me, pointing at the panthers; Those two are mine. 

I nod and step up to meet Hepzibah in a duel. Abaddon comes forward, thankfully hidden by my black cloud of magic that hid my face.

"Hepzibah." Abaddon and I crone at her. Her eyes widen at Abaddon's harsh voice and from the corner of my eyes, I see Tom sending spell after spell at the panthers. They had some sort of enchantment on them that made anything Tom send their way go repelling off.

He'd seemed to notice that early in the fight and begun to levitate things in the air sending them flying at the panthers in an attempt to slow them down.

Hepzibah and I circle each other. I still had the goblet clutched in my hands, so duelling wasn't going to be as easy as always.

"Accio-" Hepzibah shouts, her greedy nature igniting as she sees the goblet. I send a spell at her, throwing her wand away in the process. I send another spell, and she slams into the wall, shaking the very house.

Her eyes widen in fear at my nonverbal magic. Nonverbal magic was severely uncommon in the wizarding world. Only tremendously powerful witches and wizards could do it.

"Petrificus Totalus!" I shriek, the spell blasting out of my wand before I finish saying the words.

"Obliviate!" I murmur and erase her memory of the entire night. She slumps in a deep slumber.

"VALENTINE!" I hear Tom shout, and I'm being thrown into the opposing wall by a very powerful spell that couldn't have come from anyone other than Tom.

I get to my feet, realizing I'd almost been pummeled by one of Hepzibah's panthers.

Holding out my wand, I glare at the panther that stood in front of me, snarling its distaste. "Incendio." I snap, sending a ball of flames at the beast. The flames hit it before flying off and almost hitting Tom, who waves it away with a slash of his wand. He sends me a glare.

It attacks and I doge it, throwing myself to the other side of a table.

I replace my wand in my ponytail and barely dodge another attack. I let out a screech of surprise and stumble back from my place on the floor.

I let out a scream of rage and send two chairs, tumbling into the two panthers with a single wave of my hand. Tom strides over and hauls me to my feet, hands lifting me up by my waist. "We need to leave." He orders, voice firm. He had a massive cut on his face that was dripping blood.

"Your face," I whisper, touching his face gently. He glares at me, waking me up from my shock.

"Come on, Dumbledore. Get us out of here." He snarls, hauling me back towards the door. My grip on the goblet hadn't lessened, and I look at him.

"You have your locket?" I ask, and he nods firmly.

The panthers pounce upwards as one and Tom positions me behind him. "Hurry with the spell." He seethes. I nod, engulfing my body in my magic before Tom sends the panthers flying away by hitting them with a table.

In seconds, I grip Tom tightly, lunging forward to wrap my arms around his neck as I haul the pair of us through the door and outside. We fall to the floor outside the house with groans. I was being suffocated as he lay right on top of me.

I freeze when he seems to realize the position we were in. He stares at me, inquiring, and I find myself unable to breathe.

He snickers, in cruel amusement before rolling off me. "Breathe, Dumbledore." He sneers, eyes hard. I scoff.

"You were lying on my lungs, you imbecile." I hiss at him, making him smirk.

I sit up before getting to my feet. Tom was already dusting his shirt off, the locket in his hand. "Salazar's locket," I announce, trying to catch my breath.

I remember his words from inside the house. "So, you're a descendant?" I ask breathlessly, and he nods.

"As are you, I see." He motions to the Hufflepuff cup clenched in my palm.

"You caught me." I chuckle and then look at him. "Switch?" I ask, and he shrugs, before nodding. He was just as intrigued by the goblet as I was with his locket. We switch relics, and I gaze at the necklace in amazement. It was stunning.

The locket was made of heavy gold with a serpentine rolled up into the letter S on a glittering green stone. I stare at it enthralled and try to open it to no avail. "It doesn't open," I mutter and then I hear a whisper. Tom must've heard it too because his head whips up to stare at the locket.

I glance at it and then at Tom, confused as my eyes widened to show it.

"Ssssssssssss sssssayyyyyy opeeeennnnnn." It hisses, and I blink in shock.

"It's Parseltongue," Tom explains, eyes trained on the locket in my hands.

"Then why can I hear it!?" I demand, making him gaze at me in intrigue.

"I have utterly no clue."

"Say it." I nudge him with my elbow. He grabs my elbow, shoving me away.

"I can speak perfect Parseltongue. How about you say it?" He decides, eyes twinkling in interest.

"I don't know how?!" I hiss at him, and he shakes his head in amusement.

"We've been speaking in Parseltongue this whole time Dumbledore."

I literally jump away from him in horror, almost dropping the locket in the process. My hands were shaking. "I'm not a descendant of Salazar though," I state in cold tone. "How do I turn off the Parseltongue!!" I realize I was still talking in snake language.

I was panicking.

"Open the locket first," Tom tells me, voice smooth, his Parseltongue switch turned off. Tears were seconds from spilling down my cheeks, so for the sake of my sanity and dignity, I say it.

"Open," I mutter in Parseltongue, watching in fascination as the locket makes a hissing sound and several clicks before it swings open in my palm.

"Now, just breathe and stop panicking you, stupid girl. Speak English."

"DON'T you think I would if I COULD!" I screech, realizing I was speaking in perfect English again before blushing. Tom just gives me a deadpanned look.

Tom had moved to stand closer. He was staring down at the locket as if mesmerized. There was a portrait of Salazar himself and a note. I take the note in-between my fingers, noticing it before Tom did. Tom takes the locket from my hands, so I could open the note up.

I read it out loud. "It is with deepest regards that I write this letter. Tom-" I stop looking up at him. His eyes were trained on mine, hard as ice. "Continue."

I clear my throat before reading again. I don't know why he wanted me to read it. Why he trusted me enough to read it. We hated each other.....sorta.

"Tom, Marvolena... I wish I could've been there. I wish I could've cared for you like a mother should've. I'm sorry. I'm sorry a fell in love. I'm sorry your father cursed us all. I'm sorry you both have-" I choke reading the next sentence, and I look up at Tom.

"You want me to keep reading?" I ask, making him nod. "Read." He says through gritted teeth.

"I'm sorry for conceiving you under a love potion," I whisper, looking up to meet his eyes. "I'm sorry you can't feel love. I'm sorry for ruining your lives. The only thing that can numb the pain... numb the darkness you feel is to break the curse I've put on you unknowingly. Find the right person, and from there, the cure begins." I finish, staring up at the thirteen-year-old boy in front of me.

He was seething, and he holds out a hand for the paper. I pass it to him, almost dropping the two relics he shoves in my hands.

His eyes scan the paper again, and he sighs, looking devastated. It was the first time I'd seen Tom look like this. So flustered and exasperated. "What's the point?" He scowls and holds out the paper in front of him. I had a feeling he was going to burn it, so I swipe it from his grasp, giving him a look.

"Don't. You'll regret it in the future." I tell him, folding it awkwardly back into the locket. He looked like he was trying to control his anger.

He loses the fight.

He lets out a heartbreaking scream, flames shooting out from his hands like he was Mother-freaking- Teressa.

I stay silent, putting the two relics in my jacket pockets.

"She's an IDIOT!" He seethes, shooting flames at a nearby tree. "Stupid falling in love. What good did that do??!!" He kills another tree. I wave my hand as I followed the broken boy on his rampant, sending the fiery branches far away from his head.

Everything he set fire, I put out.

I walked behind him silently, just letting him take out his pent outrage and anger.

He was utter destruction, I realized. This boy was broken into a million pieces.

His heart was doused in darkness and loneliness. He was alone. He'd always been alone.

I thought I would hate him. I thought it'd be so easy to kill Lord Voldemort. I thought I'd set the curse upon him the second I saw him.

But Tom... Tom wasn't Lord Voldemort. He was still just Tom Riddle... the boy that only knew pain.

I understood, I realized as I walked behind Tom, protecting him from his own flames.

I understood why he became Lord Voldemort. His heart had been made for breaking and for pain. But weren't we all made for that? For pain and heartbreak and loneliness.

He stops, still screaming out all the profanities he could. I stop too.

From the moment he'd been born, the darkness was all he knew. He was stuck in the dark. He was blind.

I walk over to his side, brushing his shoulder with mine.

He looks at me then, and this time, I didn't squirm under the intensity and coolness of his glare.

Pain had conquered him. Pain had made him become Lord Voldemort. He'd never had love to even know what it was in the first place.

I would follow him into the dark. The thought comes to me without warning but contemplating it... I found myself agreeing. "I'll follow you into the dark Riddle," I whisper, making him look away. A look of loathing and disgust was drawn on his face.

"Infatuated with me that much, Dumbledore." He sneers the words. I don't respond, moving to stand in front of him. I notice a flaming branch heading towards our heads and I send it away with another wave of my hand.

Tom's head follows the direction of the fire. I don't think he even noticed the flame on his jacket. I brush it off, quickly wincing at the burn.

His eyes whip around to meet mine, falling to my hand.

"Why?" He scowls.

"I'll be the flashlight to guide you out of the dark." I smile up at him. He glances down at me, shaking his head at me.

"I've been lost for too long." He admits.

"Then, I'll get lost with you."

"I don't want you getting lost."

The words have me tilting my head slightly at him.

"Too bad... I've stepped into the darkness, and I'm not looking for anyone else but you."

"You won't find me." His expression was like it was cut out of stone.

I knew this would be the last time he ever showed me this side of him.

I grab his hand, interwinding our fingers. He lets me this time, gazing at me curiously as I lift our fingers to show him.

"I already have."


	26. Curses to Mutter

I lead Tom to the outskirts of the town that he had momentarily destroyed.

"What are we doing?" Tom scowls at me, "Dumbledore."

I ignore him. We reach an untouched patch of snow, and I wave my hand, casting a spell so we wouldn't freeze to death or get wet. "Sit." I grin at him and plop down on the snow before him.

He eyes me warily and looks at me in disgust. "Why are we here?" He snarls, making my grin widen.

"I'm going to teach you the healing spell you wanted to learn."

He stares at me silently, but the gleam in his eyes has me knowing I made the right choice by trying to get his mind off his mum.

"And the one you performed allowing us to break into that disgusting old hag's home." He gives a loathsome look, and I chuckle.

"She could've put a better robe on." I agree with him.

"She could've put a better everything on."

I laugh, and then he sighs, motioning with his hand. "Get on with it, Dumbledore." He scowls.

We sat facing each other, both of us crisscrossed on the snow. I'd put out all the flames, Tom had caused to my immense relief.

"So, you need to be able to channel your magic like a whip," I tell him and unleash my magic. "It's another limb. An extension of you." I shoot my magic out to the side, and it returns back to me instantly. "That's the first step." I beam at him.

He was staring at me with that same intelligent look he always wore when we were in class. "That's magnificent." He breathes, staring at my magic in barely concealed awe.

I blink at him, staring in shock. "I think that's the first compliment that you have ever given me." I grin, teasingly. He sends me a deadly glare.

"You might be a significant pain, annoyance, ugly troll, insignificant wanker-" I interrupt him before he can continue his long list of insults.

"Riddle." I scowl, giving him a look.

"- and the most infuriating, godawful person I've ever had the displeasure of meeting-" He continues, ignoring me entirely. "But, even I can't deny your obvious power and mastery of magic." He spits the last words out like he couldn't believe he was saying them. He continued to have a sour expression on his face, glaring at me.

My grin grows. "Thank you." I chirp, clapping my hands in glee. I was holding this over his head for the next couple of years. By the lethal look of hate on his face, it looked like he knew it too.

"So whip. Use your magic like a whip." I order him, causing him to glare at me. "What's the easiest way of doing it?" He scowls.

I purse my lips thinking for a second and then my eyes widen as I get an idea. "Lumos," I say and fling a ball of light into my fingers. Tom watches me, a predatory look in his eyes. "So you see this? This has magic in it, of course." I muse. "If you look closely at it, you can see the little specks of magic that lie in the light." I hold it close and genuinely, you could see the magic I usually wielded. Tom wears an appreciative look on his face.

"So just focus your inner magic on the magic in your hand. It gets easier with practice." I say and then stare at it, unfolding the ball of light in my palm by controlling the magic inside. The light sputters out, and the ball of light it'd once been stretched out into a wave of sparkling beautiful twinkling magic. I wave my hand, and it starts to fly around us, encircling us.

"After you can do that, the spells I did before will be easy to do."

He nods, soaking up the information I told him eagerly. He flicks his palm open, and I see a ball of light appear in his palm. He stares at it brow creasing in concentration.

He looks up at me in frustration after a minute and my mind whirls for a second. "Order it," I tell him and he raises a brow in question.

"Order the magic to move," I demand, playing to Tom's strengths. He was a natural-born leader. Tom tilts his head to the side, deep in thought, and then he stares at the ball of light in his palm.

"Move." He snarls, and I can hear the raw power in his voice and see the intense look in his eyes. I watch, intrigued as the ball of light sputters out, similar to how mine did. It collapses into a heap on his palm. With a swish of his hand, the magic flies around us, joining in with my own.

"Excellent!!" I beam at him. Tom wore a look of arrogance and pride on his face. My first time doing something like that went about similar to his. I wasn't going to tell him that I had got it on my third try, while he got it on his second. He'd never let me live it down.

"Yours was dark magic," Tom states suddenly, and I nod, allowing the dark waves to surface from my palms.

"It's the exact same concept." I murmur, watching as the darkness flowed around us and through my fingertips, like water.

"Try conjuring pure magic from your hands instead of using Lumos first. Then we'll work on dark magic if you really want to." I cringe a bit.

I was teaching the future Lord Voldemort how to do dark magic. Lovely.

He does it without a second thought, and I couldn't help but admire the raw talent and power the boy in front of me had.

"Next." He smirks at me, making me roll my eyes.

"Same thing Riddle. Just use dark magic instead of the usual." I tell him, and he scowls.

I see him mutter a spell, and once I see the flames erupt from his hands, I'm throwing myself to the side. The curse flies out of Tom's palm and causes a tree to explode behind us.

"TOM!" I snarl and shove him in my anger. "Did I tell you to conjure a dark curse!" I whine, and he shrugs.

"You didn't, but I enjoyed that."

"Enjoyed almost seeing me blown up!?" I hiss, making him scoff.

"You could've deflected it."

"If I hadn't seen that-"

"But you did." He interrupts cooly, making me take a steadying breath.

"Just conjure the magic like you did before, using dark magic instead!" I snap, moving slowly back to my place in front of him. "NO, curses!" I demand at him the second he opened his palm again. He sends me a nasty look.

He manages to do it on his first try, making me smile. "I'm such a good teacher," I smirk, making Tom give me an unamused look.

"I'm a marvellous student. Without my skill, you wouldn't be able to teach a toad." He dismisses me in a second.

"I taught you, didn't I?" I mutter under my breath, hoping he didn't hear me, but he did because he was the one shoving me this time.

I roll my eyes at him and lift myself out from the snow I'd charmed to stay warm.

"Next, Dumbledore. Come on, girl, we haven't got all day." Tom jeers.

"It's night time, actually."

"I'm one second away from continuing our duel from the courtyard." He warns me, and I chuckle.

"As if you'd want to. I would've won that."

"Not even in your dreams, Dumbledore." He sneers. I walk around, calling my magic back to me. Tom sees what I was doing and does the same thing. I realize he was an impeccable visual learner. A trait we both shared.

"The curse you used to break into the hag's home?" He orders me in an emotionless tone, and I nod, thinking of how to teach it to him.

"It's a dark curse," I tell him, making him nods. "So you need your dark magic." I muse, conjuring said magic up in my hands. The orbs pulsed in my hands, exceedingly unstable.

"You control it and allow it to engulf your entire body." I continue, demonstrating it. Tom copies me, looking deathly interested.

"Now what?" He snaps, eager to learn it. I walk over to a tree, and I grin at him. His eyes watched my every movement.

"Now you say the same spell over and over again while you are moving through the inanimate object... Propta Eam." I say out loud and then stick my hand through the tree, saying the spell over and over again. I stop saying it, and then my hand gets stuck inside the tree.

"The second you stop saying the spell, you're stuck in the inanimate object." I continue, whipping my hand out of the tree as I start repeating the spell again.

"It's tricky because if your mouth gets stuck in an inanimate object, you can't really speak anymore, right? So you would essentially die of lack of oxygen unless you know nonverbal magic, which in our case will save our arses." I explain and watch as Riddle walks over.

"Propta Eam." He chants and sticks his hand in the tree I'd used.

"There you go." I cheer, and he looks over at me, a pleased gleam in his eyes.

"That is simple." He points out. I shrug.

"I told you it would be."

I see the cut on his face from where the panther had scratched him. I wave my hand over his face. The cut was deep, and it stitches up with my spell.

Tom whips around to stare at me. "Why'd you do that?"

"Because it looked deep," I answer.

"I didn't need your help."

"I helped anyways," I say mindlessly, causing him to scowl at me.

"Insufferable girl." He sneers, making me roll my eyes.

"At least I'm not an arrogant prick."

A twig breaks, causing us to freeze. Tom and I glance at each other before whirling around at the same time. There he was.

Grindelwald.

He was sneering at us, and I realize that there were people everywhere. Around eleven deadly wizards and witches stood in a circle around us.

We were surrounded.


	27. A Grave of Secrets

"Why does this always happen to us?!" I hiss at him.

"It's you." He replies, eyes hard and darting around from one person to the next. "You attract danger like no one I've ever met. It's utterly exhausting." He scowls, making me sneer at him.

"That is a false accusation. You have no proof." I huff.

"Is this not proof enough." He gives me a cold look, and I take out my wand.

"Do we fight?" I snap, ignoring his accusation, and he purses his lips.

"We have terrible odds." He announces, and I sigh, rolling my eyes.

"No, really?!" I hiss at him. "I thought eleven to two were amazing odds!"

He ignores my panicked outburst, "To what do we owe this pleasure?" Tom demands, voice firm and loud. Grindelwald snickers, moving to walk in front of us.

"I want my daughter back." He raises a brow, making Tom shrug.

"Go get her then. She'd been a pain in my-" I cover his mouth with my hand. Don't you dare my eyes glare at him.

"Listen to the boy, dearie. Although my Aurors and I would adore a fight right now. Killing you two would not benefit me in any manner." He sneers, making me scoff. His mismatched eyes, so like Ariana's, were devoid of the love she usually had for us. I was not handing that precious child away to this monster. I refused.

"You need us, you idiot. You wouldn't kill us." I mock Grindelwald, making him grin at me.

"Yes, but torture remains on the table." He grins, wickedly, and I smile... a cruel, taunting smile. "Give it your best shot." I snarl and raise my wand, meeting the wizard in combat.

"Ohhhhhhh, I like you!!!" He gives an evil giggle. "You'd be a beast working for me." He thinks out loud again.

"I'd never work for someone like you. Someone who treated their own daughter like trash." I snap again. Grindelwald's eyes flare up in anger.

"What did I say about angering your opponent Dumbledore!" Tom hisses at me in a whisper, pushing me backwards as we tried to put as much distance as we could between the Dark wizard and us.

"I don't really care!!! We need to get the attention of the wizards in the town here." I state. "If they see that we'd woken up the town, that'd distract them enough for us to apparate away right?" I ask, whispering, and he purses his lips at my plan.

"They wouldn't expect us to apparate." He whispers back, nodding in agreement.

We were two underage wizards. No one would expect us to know to apparate.

"I LOVE my daughter!" Grindelwald screeches, making me look at him in disgust. "What is her name?" I demand.

Grindelwald stays silent, but the look of utter despising hate doesn't leave his face.

"Exactly," I state.

Grindelwald raises his wand in my face. "I've just decided to kill you." He demands, but Tom sends me a grim look, so I nod in response. As one, we send our wands into the air. "Periculum," I mutter, making a gust of red sparks shoot out from my wand. Tom throws the same spell upwards, and the two charms explode into one another. The sound thunders throughout the town and I barely had time to dodge an incoming spell.

"Reducto!" I yell, using my hand to nonverbally repel another spell headed my way. I blast the Periculum spell from my wand again, sending more red sparks flying upwards.

"Stupefy."

"Stupefy!"

Tom and I blast the spells at the same time, and Grindelwald marches forward but stops when there are screams heard from the town beside us. Wizards had heard our cries for help and were rushing over.

The Aurors were all racing at us now, and my blood freezes over.

Tom glances at me in question, and I shake my head. Not yet.

Waving his hand, Tom surrounds us in a cloud of black fog, temporarily blinding our attackers. "Protego Maxima." I seethe and surround the town in the exceedingly protective incantation before Tom grabs my wrist and apparates us out of there. I see Grindelwald's utterly astounded look before my vision becomes distorted with our apparition.

We sit on the floor, exhausted... well I was exhausted, Tom's just enraged.

"How dare they attack us?!" He booms in that same chilling tone. "The filthy, filthy peasants will WISH they never dared mess with me."

"Tom, shut up." I scoff, slumping on a tree. "We escaped. We are safe. We'll get revenge on the damn psycho when we don't have twenty Aurors attacking us!" I snap at him, making him scoff.

"I could've taken them all."

"As could I."

He glares at me, and I glare right back at him.

"We did it to save the town," I conclude, giving us both an excuse.

"Insufferable fools!" He seethes again, making me groan.

I look around, taking in our surroundings, while Tom was still pacing like a madman. I gape, my heart thudding in my chest. We were in a damn cemetery.... at night. As if being in a cemetery wasn't creepy in itself. We were in one at night. I knew from Abaddon that more than just dead bodies and bones resided in cemeteries.

I see it before it sees me.

"Tom....." I whisper, but he wasn't paying attention to me. "Tom!!!" I snap my voice vibrating in fear. The guy finally turns to give me an annoyed look. "WHAT, Dumbledore! What could possibly be so important that you feel the need to-" I interrupt him.

"Werewolf," I say in fear, pointing to the beast in horror. Tom whips around in shock, a look of dread on his face.

The werewolf in front of us was no mere wolf. It had a hideously shorter snout, tufted tail, and such human-like eyes looking at them made me shudder.

I get up slowly, watching as the beast followed me with its eyes. "Why did you bring us to a cemetery!" I hiss at Tom, who was also watching the werewolf with a disgusted look.

"It was the first location I thought of? Would you like to return to duel Grindelwald?" He seethes, making me nod.

"Yes, actually! Grindelwald would be a blessing compared to this!!!" I demand watching as the werewolf started to circle around us. I try to step back, but the beast lets out a deafening roar. My blood froze.

"Move, Dumbledore!" Tom hisses, shoving me forward and breaking me out of my terrified trance. It rushes at us and pushes me roughly to the side, charging at me. I scream, lifting a hand and shooting a ball of flames at the creature. I distract it enough to get to my feet and race away.

Tom and I are running.

It gallops after us like a horse, gaining on us with the momentum and utter power it held. I send a blast of magic, throwing it behind me. It explodes beside it, allowing me more time to run. I'm pulled to the side suddenly and let out a muffled scream. "Shut up!" Tom snaps, shoving me, into a huge tree, and covering my mouth.

I place a hand on my heart, trying to calm it down, shoving Tom's hand away. We were going to die. This was it.

"Calm down, Val." Abaddon orders in my head. "Werewolves wouldn't dare attack a demon."

"I'm NOT a demon, though... am I !?" I hiss at him in my head.

"Put me in control. Let me teach the mutt a lesson." He chuckles in delight, making me scowl.

"No, Tom is here." I think at him.

Tom puts a finger to his lips, motioning to the werewolf that was prowling around the tree. We instinctively step into the corners of the tree trunk.

"Apparate?" I mouth at Tom, and he nods, pointing at me. I was going to apparate us away.

Just as I reach out to grab his hand, a roar is heard, and the tree we inside began to shake. The damn werewolf was ramming itself into the tree, trying to get at us.

"Concentrate, Dumbledore!" Tom shouts. I jump up, gripping his hand with one arm and his shoulder with my other as Tom sends a spell at the werewolf charging at the tree entrance. "Incarcerous." He shouts, and before I apparate us away, I see the ropes and chains Tom had conjured out of thin air grab onto the werewolf. The wolf cries out in pain and anger.

That's the last thing I hear before I apparate us away.


	28. A Parent Killed

We had landed straight in the middle of Hog's Head Inn.

I thanked the lord that Aberforth's Inn wasn't a very popular place in Hogsmeade because it was only Aberforth that was gaping at us.

"I think I need to sit down." I gasp and almost fall flat on my face, but Tom hauls me to my feet only to shove me on one of the couches with a look of indifference.

"Val?!" Aberforth yells and rushes to check on me. "Val, are you alright?" He asks me. "Yup. Yup." I breathe and watch as Tom himself sits down to glare at me.

"I told you, you attract danger." He scoffs, making me sneer at him.

"It could be you!!!" I snap back. He shakes his head, leaning back in his chair to give me a look.

"No. No. Most definitely you."

"Valentine Dumbledore!" Aberforth booms at me, and I wince.

"Well... we were kind of attacked by Grindelwald and his Aurors again.... and then we were attacked by a werewolf," I say blunt and straight to the point. Aberforth blinks.

"Who apparated you two here?" He asks, and I raise my hand.

"That'd be me... " I raise my head and decide to lie on the couch like it was a bed. Aberforth just sighs and shakes his head.

"I'm just going to act like I didn't hear you tell me you were capable of illegally apparating." He scolds me indirectly. "Were any of you two bitten or scratched by the werewolf?" He demands, and Tom sits up to stare at me. He gives me a once-over with his eyes.

"Dumbledore, were you scratched?" Tom hisses at me, making me shake my head, my eyes closed in exhaustion.

"No scratches," I confirm. "Bruises, however? Yes."

I open my eyes to see Aberforth staring at us in relief, Tom was scowling even more than usual.

"I'm going to make you both some hot chocolate," Aberforth demands suddenly. "More for my sanity than yours." He grumbles under his breath, leaving to his kitchen.

"Why were you thinking of the cemetery when we apparated?" I ask out loud, turning my head to look at Tom. His eyes were trained on me like I was a rabbit, and he was the wolf deciding whether or not he wanted to eat me whole or rip me into pieces.

"None of your concern." He snarls. I swing myself up into a seating position, looking at him in anger.

"I almost got mauled to death by a freaking werewolf you imbecile. I think that makes it my concern." I demand, eyes blazing in anger. He shrugs and gets more comfortable in his chair.

"You should've been faster and dodged the beast."

"I'm going to give you something to dodge, you arse." I hiss and throw a pillow in his face. He points his wand at it, and the pillow explodes into a million feathers.

"That was a beautiful pillow, and you destroyed it!" I was seething in anger, but he smirks.

"You shouldn't have thrown it at me."

"Why did we end up in the cemetery Tom?" I ask again in a more serious tone. "Is that where your mum is buried?" I ask gentler. He doesn't answer me, but the look in his eyes gives me my answer. "Don't mull over her." I dictate.

"She doesn't deserve to be in any of your thoughts," I answer the question in his eyes. "I'm not thinking of my idiot of a mother." He snarls, growing exceedingly defensive.

"What would you do if you saw your father? If he walked in the pub right this second? After everything, he put you and your mum through."

He stays silent, and Aberforth comes back with our hot chocolates. I smile slightly at how eager Riddle was to drink Aberforth's hot chocolate again. I take my own cup and lift it to my lips with a smirk.

"What did Grindelwald want with you kids this time?" Aberforth asks, making me cringe. "He wanted us to reveal where Ariana was," I state.

"He tried to use Legilimency on us," Tom states calmly. Aberforth and I gape at him. "What do you mean, Legilimency? How do you know this, Tom?" Aberforth asks him. Tom shrugs.

"I'm adept at Legilimency and Occlumency." He says in the same cold, unemotional tone. "As is Valentine." He points at me, making me purse my lips in confusion.

"I've never even attempted it," I admit, baffled. Legilimency and Occlumency were terribly hard to master. Reading minds and blocking one's thoughts from other intrusions was difficult. Even the best Aurors couldn't even begin to try to attempt it.

My words have Tom looking confused as well.

"I read the old fool's thoughts. He couldn't come close to reading either of our minds. I, myself, can't penetrate your mind either."

"You've tried reading my mind?!" I gasp at him and throw another pillow at him in a fit of rage. "You sick, twisted-" Aberforth sends me a scolding look stopping my rant. Tom catches the pillow to my annoyance. My annoyance increases when he sends me his usual mocking smirk.

"I protect your mind from anyone entering it, my child," Abaddon explains, and my eyes widen in realization.

"Oh. Thank you, Abaddon." I realize and the demon shrugs. "He would've been reading my mind as well, young one."

"I'm adept at Occlumency. Legilimency, however, I haven't even tried attempting." I explain myself, trying to cover up the fact that I had extra supernatural powers because a demon resided in me. "I couldn't feel him even probing at my mind."

"Your defences must be impenetrable." Aberforth breathes, staring at the pair of us in silent astonishment. "You two children might just be the most powerful wizard and witch I've ever seen in my life." He tells us.

"I'm the strongest." Tom and I both say in unison, causing us to sneer at each other in ill contempt.

"You two make quite the pairing." Aberforth chuckles, arising disgusted looks on both our faces.

"No." Tom snaps, face calm.

"No way," I respond at the same time, my lip curling up in revulsion.

Aberforth looked like he was reading a rom-com and enjoying every second of it. "You two shouldn't be out alone anymore." He makes a 180 and starts looking at us like a parent would. "You children left the castle bounds without informing anyone, and that is unacceptable. Riddle... I'm talking to you too." My cousin points at a smirking Tom, whose smirk drops in the next second.

I chuckle, leaning into the couch, grinning in evil satisfaction. That was funny.

"You are never to leave the castle grounds without supervision again. Do you understand me?" Aberforth booms in a voice to rival Albus's.

"We handled ourselves quite well," Tom states, sipping his hot chocolate nonchalantly.

"We almost died," I say deadpanned.

"We were fine."

"We almost died three times today."

"Your fault entirely."

"May I remind you of the werewolf incident!" I snap, getting angry again.

"May I remind you of the traumatizing knicker incident?" Tom repeats, giving me a look, and my nose crinkles as I remember Hepzibah Smith.

"Knicker incident?" Aberforth looked in shock.

"You don't want to know." I groan. Aberforth nods, placing a hand on his chest.

"Yes, you're right, I don't." He agrees. "Try to keep the last bit of my sanity left." He mutters. I yawn and look at the clock, realizing it was almost two am.

"Happy New Years," I say through my yawn.

Tom looks at the clock realizing we'd started a new year. "Hopefully, this year, the war will end," Aberforth says as if talking to himself. "Now off with you two. Back to Hogwarts. Now." He orders and we both stand. Aberforth gives me a huge hug, patting Tom fondly on his shoulder before heading upstairs to rest.

"You asked me what I would do if I saw my father," Tom says suddenly, making me whip around to look at him.

"Yeah, I did," I whisper, staring at the unemotional expression on his face. I meet his eyes, seeing the fiery hate and rage in them.

"I'd kill him."


	29. The Mind is a Dark Place

"VAL!!!"

I fall hard. Abby falls with me, having had jumped at me like a monkey. She was laughing so hard, I was concerned about the witch. "I MISSED you!!!" She shrieks, and I grin at her.

"I missed you too!!!" I beam.

"Abagail. Honestly, you're acting like a hillbilly." Pan scoffs, waling over to help me up. "Hello, Val." She sends me a smile filled with warmth and affection. She engulfs me in a gentler hug than Abby had.

"Nice to see you, Pan." I beam at her, hugging her back. Pan and I find ourselves being lifted into a massive hug by none other than Claude and Chris. "Can't....breathe." I choke out, feeling my stomach being smushed.

"Unhand us!!" Pan demands, sounding just like I did. They set us down, and I rub my stomach, wincing slightly. Abby had run over to grab Greta, who walks over to give my hand a loving squeeze.

"How are you, Val?" She asks instantly, and her concern for me has my eyes softening at the kind witch in front of me.

"Marvelous! How are you?" I ask, gripping her hand tighter. Her face lights up, silver eyes glinting in the sunlight.

"Very well, thank you. The train ride was enjoyable. Abby bought me a chocolate frog." She looked so excited at the concept of a chocolate frog that we all melt a little staring at the girl.

"That's wonderful!" I exclaim.

We all walk back towards the castle, laughing and hearing about the holiday shenanigans.

"We BLEW up its head!!!" Chris demands, slapping Claude hard on his shoulder.

"Yes, blowing up the head of your younger brother's bear was very entertaining." Claude rolls his eyes, and Chris shrugs.

"I had to get rid of the thing somehow."

"You probably traumatized the kid, Chris." I laugh, walking in tow with Claude and Abby. Claude has his arm wrung over my shoulders, and Abby had her hand linked in my own.

"I got him a new one for Christmas, so I thought blowing up his old one was valid."

We all stare at the blonde boy in disbelief. "Valid reasoning," I say, shrugging. Chris gives me a high-five with a proud grin.

"Can we hurry up and get to the Great Hall." Pan declares. "I'm ravenous."

"I agree with Pan... Surprisingly." Abby scowls, making Pan give her a look.

"Let's go EAT!!" Abby cheers, and we all make our way after her skipping form.

We enter the Great Hall. As if it was second nature by now, my eyes flit over to the Slytherin table. I realized I was actually worried about the stupid boy. Tom was sitting at the edge of the table, three boys surrounding him. A couple of girls were leaning into their conversation, but Tom wasn't paying attention to the girls fluttering their eyelashes at him so hard I thought they were having a seizure. He was focused on the three boys and what they were saying.

"Should I try Legilimency?" I ask Abaddon and the demon shrugs.

"He tried it on you. Only fair." The demon chortles in glee.

I make my way to the Gryffindor table, which was where we had all decided to sit. I fill my goblet with some berry tea, contemplating whether or not I should enter Tom Riddle's mind.

"How was your Christmas, Val?" Claude asks me suddenly, throwing me out of my thoughts. I smile at the redhead, answering his question truthfully.

"It was incredibly tiring and thought I was going to die most times." My answer causes them to laugh in amusement, thinking I was joking. They didn't know that I'd actually been so close to death this Christmas break. "I spent a lot of time with my cousin Aberforth," I say, thinking about my cousin fondly. "It was nice to be with family for the first time."

They stare at me, all wearing the same looks of pity before thankfully Claude changes the subject.

I tune out of the conversation, and then my eyes lock on Tom a table away. "You might need to actually say the spell the first time around," Abaddon tells me, making me purse my lips.

"He'll sense me. He's an impeccable Legilimens." I think back at him.

"Try it on one of your friends first." He tells me. I cringe. I don't think I wanted to do that. "You need to practice, young one. At least someone who won't be as superior to you in Legilimency." Abaddon tells me, trying to make me feel better.

My eyes dart around, searching for an unsuspecting suspect. They land on the Malfoy boy. He'd been the one to annoy both Abby and me during potions. I lock my eyes on the boy and whisper the incantation so quietly it might've been silent, "Legilimens."

I instantly feel myself be projected magically into Malfoy's head. I shudder in disgust and delve deeper, trying to find out his current thoughts. Filthy mudbloods. I hear him snarl.

He was feeling anger and was that fear? Fear of what. I focus harder and realize he was petrified of Riddle, who sat beside him. I hear him scoff. Stupid Avery. Always trying to get Riddle's approval. He's like a dog. A filthy, rotten scumbag dog.

I couldn't help but blink in surprise at the utter hostility Malfoy was feeling.

I wish Walburga paid me attention. I hear him mutter angrily.

Oh yeah, I agree entirely. This Christmas was horrendous. My parents were trying to set me up with this weird girl. I don't know if you know her? Greta Ollivander..... Yeah, one of the twenty-eight sacred families. He answers Avery's question

My heart stops.

Greta? Our Greta? Sweet, adorable Greta? With Malfoy?!

I was panicking.

I didn't realize how hot Walburga looks in that skirt. I wonder... If she stood up, could I see her-

I instantly retreat out of his mind. I didn't notice I'd been sweating with the exertion of my focus. I grab Chris's goblet of cranberry juice and drown it.

"You okay, Val?" Chris asks in genuine concern. I nod, drinking the juice desperately.

"Fine." I gasp, setting the cup down. "Almost choked." I grin at him.

My eyes dart to Tom again. Maybe I could try it now. I think I had a good handle on it.

"After trying it once?" Abaddon scoffs. "My are we impatient and arrogant."

"Can you make sure he doesn't sense me?" I ask my demon. He's silent for a second.

"I am proficient in physical attacks. Mental isn't my forte; however, I will do my best, my little human."

"That's all I can really ask for."

I perform the spell nonverbally this time, and I feel myself give a gentle tap on Tom's mind. He doesn't seem to realize I was trying to get into his head yet. I delve a bit deeper, still being extremely cautious. I can hear exactly what his Slytherin group is saying.

Look at that Hufflepuff Malfoy chortles. She's a freak. They all laugh, and I realize they were mocking Abby. My fists clench on my table in front of me.

Her laugh is repulsive. Hurts my ears, Lestrange scoffs.

She's a half-blood. An utter embarrassment to the wizarding world. Avery demands.

The fools don't realize how- Tom's inner thought stops and then I hear him.

Hello Dumbledore.

My blood freezes and I stop delving deeper into his mind.

"Retreat!! Retreat!!!" Abaddon screeches in my head. Thanks, Abaddon. So helpful.

I can sense you in my mind. I suggest you stop looking through my head before I blast yours off! He snarls in such a fearsome tone, I flinch. You are reacting to my words. I know it's you. Dumbledore!!! Tom booms in my head.

I don't move, my eyes lifting up to meet Tom's. He looked mad.

He looked ready to send the darkest of dark curses my way and enjoy it. Get out of my head, Tom orders me, but I make no attempt to do what he says; instead, I smirk. He gets even madder. He gets up and strides over to our table. My friends had quieted down and were staring at Riddle in bafflement. Actually, the entire castle had gone silent. I could see the glares I was getting from every female in the damn castle that wasn't Abby, Pan and Greta.

He walks over and stands behind me, waiting. "Dumbledore." He snarls, and I whirl around, raising a brow. This scenario amused me immensely.

"Hello, Riddle. How may I help you?" I say, grinning. I was trying not to laugh and failing. Tom points at me with his wand, making me tilt my head. I get to my feet slowly, still grinning. "What? Is the great Tom Riddle annoyed?" I ask.

"Hey! Dude. Back off." Chris scowls. Claude moves to stand by my side.

"I advise you to step away, Riddle." Claude snaps as he and Abby stand to defend me. Tom lets out a snort, staring at them like they were a joke.

"Do you want to die?" He threatens, giving them a cat-like smile that was so fake, even kind Greta wouldn't be fooled by it.

"Pardon?" Pan asks, horrified. Tom doesn't even answer her, his eyes trained on me.

"You know why I even graced you with my presence Dumbledore." Tom snarls and shoves me with an arm. "Don't get me angry." He hisses in my ear, walking back to his table. I slowly sit down in my seat, ignoring my friends' mini freak out.

"Oh my god!! Valentine!! You know Tom Riddle." Pan demands in awe.

"What did Tom want with you?" Chris demands.

"Why was he so mean?" Abby continues.

I don't break the mini staring war I was having with Tom Riddle.

I decided to freak him out even more. "Valentine.... one. Tom....zero." I project the thoughts into his mind, grinning at him in a taunting manner. His eyes widen, hearing my voice.

I had you beat a long time ago you Troll, Tom snarls, glaring at me.

He shuts his mind to me with so much power, I was flung out. My brow crinkles in pain.

I felt like my head suddenly exploded.

I smile, though, incredibly smug. I'd managed to get into his mind without him noticing immediately....he couldn't even get into mine.

I see him slam his fist on the table in front of him, and I burst out laughing.


	30. Powers Beyond Belief

"So, I'm a Seer?!"

I was gaping at my grandmama, the goblet in my hands. "The goblet gave me the abilities of a parseltongue and a Seer," I repeat. My grandmama was highly amused. Her blue eyes twinkled in delight, and she looked like she was trying not to laugh.

"I saw a vision of myself in the future?" I was finding it very difficult to process my newfound abilities.

"Correct my child. Your powers are brand new, and the visions will hit you randomly. The more you use your Seer abilities, the more control you'll have over them." She explains. "This is marvellous!!" She squeals in happiness. "You'll be the third Seer our family has had!!" She looked ready to get up and start dancing.

"What was your first vision!?" She demands eagerly, and I sigh, leaning back into her chair and sipping on the tea she loved to serve.

I think back to the vision I saw in Hepzibah Smith's house, and I purse my lips, remembering the laugh I'd heard. I knew I'd been hugging a guy. That laugh was honestly the most heartfelt laugh I'd heard in a while. I'd felt so happy. I'd never felt like that in my life. What could have possibly allowed me to feel like that? I knew when I was watching the vision from my point of view that I'd cared immensely for this person. I couldn't see his face and his hair was covered up by a yellow hat. So maybe he was in Hufflepuff.

"I saw myself hugging someone," I say, and my grandma's excitement increases.

"Seer visions come in so many shapes and forms!!! But it's so hard to see a vision about yourself. Almost impossible." She admits, making me look up in shock. "It was probably a significant vision, my child. Don't rule it out just because it doesn't make sense."

"The goblet might give you more powers, depending on your need for it. Use them wisely, Val. There have been instances where my descendants have gone mad because of their misuse of those powers. My goblet is both a blessing and a curse." She cautions me, making my eyes go wide in horror.

"Don't make something so amazing turn into a curse, my dear."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I walk to class, my head spinning, the goblet was tucked nicely into my bag. I needed to figure out where to put the bloody thing. It was way too powerful to be out in the open. The damn thing made me a parseltongue! A bloody parseltongue.

I could talk to snakes.

I swear if I started to flash with visions every time I touched someone, then I would go mad. I make my way to the Great Hall in time for dinner when I hear a voice I recognized. "Please. Please Stop." I listen to the voice stutter.

I knew that voice.

"Don't touch ME!!" Greta snaps in anger and fear. "Abraxas, don't you dare touch me." She demands, making me rush towards the voice in horror. I sprint around the corner only to see something that makes my blood boil in anger.

Malfoy was standing over my petite friend. He was glaring at her with such hatred, I wanted to smack him silly. "You are my fiancee, are you not!" He snarls. "I am allowed to touch what is mine."

"She is not yours, you foul pig." I snarl, whipping my wand to point it at his neck threateningly. "Just because your parents decided Greta was to be your wife, DOES NOT mean you are even deserving of a single hair on her head."

Malfoy draws his wand and points it at me as well. "Don't get involved, Dumbledore. this is between Ollivander and me." He sneers, making me glare at him.

"You might want to lower your wand, you platinum imbecile." I taunt. Greta grabs my hand.

"Val, please. He's not worth it." She begs me, and I shake my head, giving her a look. I realize how scared she'd been, and my eyes soften.

"Fine." I purse my lips and Malfoy gives a cunning laugh.

"You can't defeat me!!" He chortles and then looks at Greta. "I'll deal with you later." He snarls, making my anger inflate like a balloon. I punch him. Hard.

"I'll be the one dealing with you!" I snap, and he screams, grabbing his nose. I ignore the throbbing pain in my hand. "You are NOT going near her!!" I seethe and then Malfoy's rage hits his peak because he sends a spell our way.

"Petrificus Totalus!" He yells, but I deflect it.

"Protego." I hiss and then send another spell at him nonverbally. He flies back in pain, and I tilt my head to the side, watching him like a predator would. "You go near my friend again, and I will cause you more pain than that." I snarl, grabbing Greta's shaking hand and leading her away from the ignorant boy writhing on the floor in pain.

"I'm sorry," Greta whispers at me. I turn to look at her. Her silver eyes were lined with glossy tears, and her face was a bright red.

"Did he touch you?" I wince at the words. Greta bit her lip, shaking her head.

"He was going to. You stopped him." She admits, and I couldn't help the wave of rage that hits me again.

"That prick deserves more than just a stunning spell!!" I demand, but she grabs my hand, her own shaking drastically. I realize how frightened and shocked my friend was. I engulf the shaking girl into a hug. She melts into the embrace, and as if a switch goes off in her head, she starts sobbing.

"He was so so mean." She cries into my shoulder. "He wanted to kiss me. I didn't want him to, so he got mad." I just hug her, listening to her troubles and lending her a shoulder to cry on. She needed a friend, and that was what I was going to be. I wasn't going to leave her to go beat up Malfoy as much as I wanted to. Greta needed me more.

"Why would someone be that mean?" She asks, shivering. "I was nice to him, and he still hates me. I don't want him to hate me. He's going to be my husband someday." She sobs again.

I watch the girl with stars in her eyes, crumble into a million pieces in front of me. The stars were put out, and all I could see was a deep pain in her orbs. "Some people have had bad things happen to them. They then proceed to take out their frustrations on other people. Like what Malfoy did to you." I explain.

She steps back from my hug, wiping her tearful eyes. "If he has a problem, I can try to help him." She cries. "I'll defend him if his parents ever tried to hurt him. He's my partner now. I would never let anything bad happen to him." She was full-on sobbing now.

I realized she cared for the blonde ferret. She actually cared about some guy whose focus was on another girl.

She's crazy.

I hear Malfoy's voice ring in my head. She doesn't even know me! Why does she care so much!! He was scowling.

I blink in surprise. Why exactly did I hear Malfoy's thoughts when I never even cast a spell to. This was getting freaky. I didn't want to hear Malfoy's thoughts all the time, especially when he was talking shit about my friend.

Why do I feel so bad? He thinks, making me scowl. The asshole better feel bad. He hurt the kindest, most precious soul ever in existence.

"You care about him?" I ask Greta softly, and she nods into my shoulder, leaning heavily on me.

"I met him over Christmas. He wasn't as bad as everyone had told me. My parents loved him, and his parents liked me...I think. They were happy with the match. I know he's in love with someone else, but I'd hoped we could at least be friends. I want him to be happy after all." She sniffles a bit, wiping her tears with her sleeve.

I sigh, deep in thought.

She's an idiot. Why would she think that? I will be her damn husband. I told her I'm in love with someone else, and she didn't even frown. Why is she crying now?!

I don't know, maybe because you harassed her?

"Let's go to the washrooms. Wash your face, and then we'll get you something to eat. I also want one of us to be always around you. He could try to hurt you again. I'm not going to let that happen." I order my friend, making her nod slowly.

"Okay. I guess you're right." She sighs. I nod content.

"Good, let's go," I tell her, and she sniffles again, trying to control her crying. I hear one last thought from Malfoy before we start to walk away again.

I didn't mean to hurt her.


	31. Scream Out Your Pain

I don't think I've ever seen my friends this mad.

They were enraged.

Greta was the sweetest person we knew. Anyone who threatened her threatened all of us as well. I couldn't imagine why anyone would even want to harm her. Her heart was made out of pure gold. Malfoy had literally attacked her, and she wasn't even mad at him. She was disappointed. She expected him to be more and do more. She had such high hopes for him, but they shattered like glass... never again able to be fixed anew.

No one left her alone after that. One of us was always by her side. One of us was always escorting her to and from classes. I knew she appreciated it by the teary look in her eyes whenever she stared at us.

I was sitting eating my lunch with Abby, Pan and Claude when Chris strolls over.... alone. "Where's Greta?" Pan is the first one to voice our concerns. He looks over at Abby in confusion.

"Wasn't she with you? She told me you two were meeting in the washrooms, and I could come eat lunch with you guys." He says slowly. Abby shakes her head slowly, a look of bafflement on her own face.

"No, she never told me that."

It takes us all of three seconds to start panicking. We all get to our feet, and Abby looked ready to burst into tears. "Where could she be!?" Pan asks in fear.

My eyes whip over to the Slytherin table. My heart drops when I see that Malfoy wasn't there. "I'm looking for Malfoy." I snarl. Abby nods, eyes blazing as she stood beside me.

"You guys look for Greta," Abby tells the rest of our friends, as Abby and I begin our march. "Where are we going?" Abby demands, following me to the Slytherin table. "Don't tell me you're going to talk to Tom Riddle." She hisses in an astounded tone. I don't answer her and round the Slytherin table, moving to sit in Malfoy's usual spot beside the black-haired boy.

"Dumbledore." Tom greets cooly. "To what do I owe the displeasure." He scowls, not looking up from the newspaper in his hands. I see an image of Grindelwald on the front cover, reminding me of Ariana.

I intended to pay her a visit soon. She lived with Aberforth now.

"Where's Malfoy?" I ask, my voice as cold as his had been. This grabs his attention. He looks up from his newspaper to give me a look.

"Malfoy? I have no clue where Malfoy is, Dumbledore." He sneers, making my heart drop.

"HOW dare you talk to him!!!"

Abby moves to sit beside me, and we share a baffled look. The girl who had spoken was wearing a sour look, staring at us like we were the grime she needed to wash off her shoes. I raise a brow. "I beg your pardon."

The girl had crazy brown eyes that reflected her utter ill contempt of us, and her matching hair was put into such a tight bun, I was surprised she hadn't become bald yet. Her nose was scrunched up like a pig's, and she was glaring at me.

"You HEARD me! How dare you talk to him, you filthy half-blood!!" She scowls, making Abby, and I look at each other.

"Did she just?" Abby whispers to me, making me nod with a look of amusement.

"She did."

"Walburga stop screeching you daft woman. You're making my ears bleed." Avery scowls. Thank the lord for Avery. Another second and my ears would've actually fallen off. The girl goes a dark red in her embarrassment.

"Hi, Tom." She flutters her eyelashes at Tom, puffing out her chest.

"Doesn't she look like a flamingo?" Abby whispers at me. Avery chokes on the drink he was sipping from. Lestrange looked highly amused as well. He kept glancing between myself and Abby like we were some comedy tv show.

"She does. She truly does." I whisper back in an equally loud voice.

Tom ignores everyone around him.

"Dumbledore, this is the Slytherin table. Why are you here?" Tom looked indifferent, and I freeze, hearing something.

I've knocked her out! What do I do? Eh, she won't remember anything I do to her. She could be considered pretty, I guess.

My blood freezes and I stand up whipping around to hear where the voice was coming from. It was Malfoy... That was one thing I was certain of.

"YOU BITCH! Tom asked you a question!!" Walburga screeches.

"Her obsession is borderline psychotic." Abby sneers in disgust and stands up. "Val? Val? What's wrong?" She asks, in concern.

"She's scared. Tucking her tail away and running. That's right half-blood you don't want to duel me. I'm a year older. I know spells you would only have nightmares about." She laughs, cackling like one of those muggle witches.

"Should I turn her green?" Abby asks, thinking exactly what I was thinking.

Where was Malfoy?? I was getting more and more panicked. "That's it, Dumbledore. Run away!" Walburga sneers in a loud voice, laughing in her cruel amusement.

I slam my hand down on the table, and the glass in her hand shatters. Everyone is silent, staring at me. "I'd look forward to duelling you and watching you writhe in pain." I snarl, making her flinch at the hostility in my tone. "Now shut up before I make you."

I'll start with her shirt.

The words have my blood boiling. He was going to hurt Greta. I walk towards the wall behind the Slytherin table and back away from it, realizing I heard his thoughts more clearly when I stood in front of the wall. His thoughts were evil and repulsive. Poor Greta. Poor Poor Greta.

"Valentine!?" Abby demands, voice loud. I notice that everyone was staring at me like I was mad. Even Tom was looking at me, eyes narrowed in thought.

"You're a freak!!" Walburga stalks around the table to point her wand at me. "I'm going to teach you a lesson you half-blood." She snarls. Her words have Abby whipping her wand out towards the Slytherin.

"You aren't touching her." My friend curls her lip in ill contempt at the female.

Avery stands to try to soothe over the situation.

"Dumbledore leave. You and your friend are disturbing us." Tom orders

"Now ladies, there is no need for-" Avery starts to say.

Skirt too? No, I'll leave the skirt on.

In a single swift movement, my wand was drawn, and I was pointing it at the wall behind us. "REDUCTO!" I shout venom in my voice. Everyone jumps up in surprise.

The wall explodes.

"GRETA!!!" Abby screams.

Greta was on the floor. Unconscious. Blood dripped around her in a circle, and there was Malfoy, standing over her.

"Get away from my friend, you BASTARD!!!" Abby shrieks.

"Stupefy!" I shout

"Petrificus Totalus!" Abby yells at the same time.

Our spells both hit Malfoy, sending him flying into a bathroom stall at the same time, and then we're running.

"Greta!" I demand, sliding down to her side. "Greta!!" Tears streamed down my face as I shook her shoulder. Abby was full-on sobbing.

"W-We need to control the blood." She wails, and I grab Greta's hand. It was cold as ice.

"HELP!!!" I scream, my hands shaking as I took off my robes and took out my wand.

I was panicking too much, and my hands were shaking badly.

"SOMEONE GET US HELP!!" Abby screams, sobbing as she held onto Greta. We both didn't care that we were covered head to toe in blood.

"Heal the wounds, Dumbledore. We need to heal the wounds." Tom appears out of nowhere and hauls me to my feet.

I try to haul myself back down to Greta's side, but Tom doesn't let me.

He slaps me.

My head whips to the side and I turn to look up at him with tear-filled eyes. "Get it together!" He snaps at me.

"What's the spell?" I demand, shoving him away. He gives me a look, eyes narrowed in concentration. "She's been cursed so Vulnera Sanentur. Say it three times. I'm going to do it with you. Diggory! make yourself useful and get a professor!" Tom yells at Abby. He really was a natural leader.

Abby was in shock.

Avery marches over and grabs my friend, hauling her into his arms. "We'll get a professor, Riddle." He answers Tom as if Tom was his leader or some shit.

"Dumbledore." He gives me a look.

"Vulnera Sanentur." I wave my wand over Greta's body. Tom was doing the same thing. My voice sings the spell as I realize that was how Tom was saying it. The drastic blood flow was stopping from Greta's body, and then Tom nods at me. "Vulnera Sanentur." We both say at the same time, walking around Greta with equal looks of concentration. Greta's wounds began to heal up.

I was feeling the energy leaving me like waves. This was one powerful incantation. "Vulnera Sanentur" We both repeat and her deep, deep cuts were being healed.

Greta breathes out the first breath she'd taken since we'd found her.

"Greta." I sigh in relief and tears erupt from my eyes again. Tom and I both slump to the side.... both of us exhausted. That spell had used our energy to heal the unconscious girl on the floor. We'd both collapsed beside each other. "Thank you." I croak to Tom.

Tom looked disgusted.

"You were screaming too loud. It was annoying me." He replies, never one to admit to actually helping someone.

"What happened here?!" Professor Merrythought screeches as she steps in the bathroom. "Oh, my dear lord!!" She jumps back, seeing the blown up wall and three students on the floor covered in blood.

"Greta," I whisper, and my head drops, eyes fluttering, onto Tom's shoulder. Tom was too exhausted to even yell at me to get my repulsive head off him. The second my head hits his robes, I'm sucked away into a vision.

Tom stood on the top of a hill that led into the Dark forest. He was bald. He had a snake at his feet. It was such a huge snake that I had to stop myself from screaming. They were talking. The snake and Tom. But I could understand every word they said.

Weeeeeee needed tooooo attackkkkkk The snake hisses. Theeeeeyyyyy knowwwwww aboooouttttssss theeeeeee Horrrrcruxxxxxx I protecttttttt

Tom nods absentmindedly. Nothing will happen to you, Naginiiiiii, as long as I'm here. He hisses back at the snake.

So the snake had a name. Lovely.

He pets the snake's head, and I couldn't help the shiver of disgust that rolls up my spine. I barely notice all the men and women in black robes that stood behind him. "Attack!!!" Tom demands, and my line of sight goes to face him directly.

I scream.

He looked like death.

He looked like his freaking pet snake.

This was not Tom Riddle.

This was Lord Voldemort.

This man was the representation of complete evil. He looked waxy like a candle. His skin was the colour of bone, and his eyes were red. He had no more sclera than I did when I channelled Abaddon. His face resembled a literal skull, and he had no damn nose!! Two snake-slits replaced his gorgeous nose from before.

He was horrifying.

He didn't even look human.

Spells were shot in every which direction and they slam headfirst into the shield Hogwarts had put up trying to defend its students. I realized I was watching the Second Wizarding War.

The vision changes.

I'm suddenly standing in front of Lord Voldemort.

He was being lathered in compliments by a woman with crazy brown curls.

She was cooing at him and literally bowing at his feet. On her hand, I saw a ring...a marriage ring. 

"Take me, my lord. Use me to control your needsssss." The woman actually begs Lord Voldemort to take her to bed with him. I was struggling to keep my lunch contained.

"Very well, Bella. I will have you carry my heir." Voldemort agrees, with an evil smirk.

I realize that the bitch in front of me was the same woman who had tortured Neville's parents to insanity.

The vision changes again.

This vision was of Tom.

Not Lord Voldemort.

He was older here.

He was excruciatingly handsome. Much more handsome.

It made my heart ache. How could someone so perfect on the outside be so warped and evil on the inside?

Tom was looking at someone in amusement. His eyes were fond. He rolls his eyes and walks over to a bed.

His bed.

It was the Slytherin dorms.

On his bed, Ariana and I were fast asleep. Ariana was cuddled up in my arms, a satisfied smile on her face.

I was grown up here. More mature. Filled out.

I was actually kind of pretty.

Tom walks around his bed and sits on the side of his bed, stretching out his legs. "Tom?" My voice makes me cringe.

"Dumbledore." He greets. Future Valentine rubs her eyes and looks up at him.

I was stunned. What was going on here? Why was Tom even letting us sleep on his bed? Why wasn't he screaming at us to get the hell away from him? I watched the next scenes like I was watching a movie.

Tom moves so that he puts Valentine- me- in-between his arms and Ariana between us. "You'll wake her, Dumbledore shush." Tom scolds her, but future me was already fast asleep again, her head on Tom's chest. He didn't look like he minded at all and even wore a soft look as he stared down at us.

"Tom!" Someone shouts and Tom quickly casts a spell silencing the person who'd entered his dorm.

"I swear Avery, you wake up my family..... I will kill you."

The visions fly away, and I realize I was crying and screaming. I stumble away from an unconscious Tom. We were still on the floor of the bathroom.

I scream again, still sobbing.

My heart was thudding loudly in my chest, and I try to crawl away. I couldn't breathe. I couldn't even think.

"Ms. Dumbledore. Ms.Dumbledore! Calm down, please!" Professor Binns tries to calm me down, but it doesn't work because the lack of oxygen becomes too much, and my world goes black.


	32. Soft Spots are Weaknesses

I wake up, my eyes whipping open, and I groan in pain. My head rushed up to clutch my head. I was parched to the degree that my tongue felt like sandpaper. It was scraping my throat so roughly, I agonized me to swallow.

I see a glass beside my bed and try to chug it down only to spit it back out. "Ughhhh." I groan, turning around in my bed to see Greta lying on the bed beside mine. Beside her bed was a sleeping Malfoy.

"You." I snarl, making Malfoy jump up in fear. Light sleeper he was.

"Valentine," Malfoy says, and I sneer.

"Don't go near her, you loathsome, evil coach roach!"

"You don't understand! I was worried about her!"

"Worried! YOU put her here!!" I almost shout in my anger. He hangs his head, ashamed. He should be. I see Abby sleeping by the foot of my bed. She was fast asleep lying face down on the covers.

Claude and Chris were also asleep in chairs around my bed and Greta's. Pan was sleeping in a manner very similar to Abby's, at the foot of Greta's hospital bed, huddled into a tight ball.

"Get out." I snarl at him. "Get out, or I'll curse you so bad, you'll lose your arm."

He pales. "Just tell her- tell her-" I interrupt him, eyes hard.

"I'm not relaying a message to my best friend from the boy that almost killed her." That was all it took for him to leave. He left before I could insult him more to my drastic displeasure.

"Valentine?" Claude grunts and opens his eyes tiredly. I shoot him one of my own tired smiles. "Hey, Claude," I whisper, and he looked devastated. "I'm so sorry." He croaks.

"You and Abby and Greta. Oh, dear Greta. You and Abby saved her, and we couldn't even find her." He was close to tears.

I reach up and grab the redhead's hand. He had a heart of gold this one.

"It's not your fault. It's Malfoy's." I state, and Claude's eyes harden.

"I punched him. The arse was whimpering from the aftereffects of yours and Abby's attacks. He had the balls to whimper like a child after what he did to Greta. How could anyone harm Greta? Greta, Valentine? She wouldn't hurt a fly." Claude looked ready to rip his hair out.

"We saved her. Nothing left to do except make sure he never goes near her again."

I give him a look, and the Gryffindor sighs before nodding.

"Are you alright? Professor Merrythought told us that Tom and you performed an exceedingly powerful spell to heal Greta. It drained you two to the point of unconsciousness." Claude looks at me in worry, and I face a soft laugh.

"Other than feeling like I've gotten run over by a bulldozer....I'm fine." I muse, making him give me a pained smile.

"Merrythought said Greta had been seconds from death. With all that blood around her, it was a surprise she hadn't died. That's why it took so much out of you guys. Greta wasn't merely dying... Merrythought said she was sure Greta had died."

I mull over this in my head. Necromancy? I swear if the goblet gave Tom and me Necromancy, I would punch something. Tom had touched the cup as well, I realize.

He'd touched the goblet and had plenty of time to obtain specific powers.

Grandmother Helga had said that the goblet usually gave powers to the holder of the cup; she didn't specify whether or not he or she had to be a descendant.

"Oh, marvellous." I groan, my head starting to hurt even more. "Are there any painkillers here for my head?" I ask Claude, making him spring up, wanting to help.

"I'll go check for you." He gives the top of my head a swift pat, like I was a child, and quietly races over to find a healer.

Pulling out my necklace, I prop my compass open. The image changes instantly from Greta's mangled and bloodied up body.

The sight has me sucking in a breath of shock. The compass could've warned me about Greta. I instantly felt the wave of guilt hit me, but it's replaced by a curious intrigue when a blonde woman is shown. A woman was smirking up at me. Her smirk was mocking.

Her red lipstick was so bright; I had to blink a bit to get the sight out of my mind.

Her hair was bright yellow, like a fluttering dandelion in the summer sunshine and her scrunched up nose and thin lips were in an expression of utter loathing.

I snap the compass shut instantly.

My gaze falls on the bed to my left.

There he was.

There was Tom.

My visions swarm back into my head, and I couldn't help but want to cry.

He had two futures set out in front of him. I'd felt like the visions were telling me he had two paths. Either he would become Lord Voldemort, getting Bellatrix pregnant eventually, or he could live a normal life.... a happy life with me and Ariana.

I wanted the second choice, I realize.

I wanted to help this boy who'd entangled his future in mine so tightly; I couldn't get loose even if I wanted to.

I hop out of my bed only to almost bump into Avery and Lestrange. The two were fast asleep in chairs by Tom's bed.

The sight had me smiling. Cute.

They really cared for him. Or they were exceedingly terrified of him. It could be both.

I was in pyjama shorts and a loose hoodie. I thanked whoever had changed me out of my blood filled robes. I don't think I'd have been able to contain myself from vomiting everywhere if I'd seen that scene again.

Walking towards Tom's bed, I stop and sit at the side of his bed. I was tired. The thought pops into my mind.

I was exhausted.

Leaning down, I watch the boy sleep, my brows furrowed. He looked peaceful. No troubles reached him while he was asleep and my heart warm at that. His face was still. No expressions of hate, no loathing disgust marred the beautiful features of his handsome face. The sight makes my heart sigh. I think of all the reasons why he felt the need to despise everyone. The utter writhing agony and pain that filled him.

It was the same agony that filled me.

We held the same darkness. We held the same pain.

We had the same past. We lived through strife and strain.

We depended on no one and yet everyone at the same time.

We were screaming for help, yet stuck in a silent mime.

We were wishing for light to brighten up our dark.

We were no bite and filled with bark.

Our pasts were seas of restless waves.

We were waiting for the day we'd dig our own graves.

Dig our own graves? Huh. That'd be fun.

Better than being stuck outside in the lying light of the sun.

That light is damnation; it's nothing but lies.

It sucks us in. A black hole filled with cries.

Why is it so dark in us when outside is bright?

No. I knew, deep down, we were not all right.

I stare at the boy in silent distress. I would get him out of that damn orphanage.

I lift my fingers slightly, trying to move the strand of hair that'd gotten on his eyelids.

My wrist was grabbed suddenly.

"Why are you in my space Dumbledore?" Tom growls, eyes still closed.

I grin and flick away his bangs with my other hand.

He lets me.

His eyes pop open, and he glances at me in curiosity. "Why are you on my side of the Infirmary?" He scowls. I sigh and shoot him a smile. There went peaceful, quiet Tom Riddle.

"Needed to make sure you were alright," I state. My words have him falling silent. He eyed me, making sure I had no other ill intentions.

"Are you alright?" I ask quietly, and he shrugs.

"We brought her back from the dead, you know." He states, making me nod.

"I realized."

"The spell usually doesn't cause so much exhaustion, especially if two people are casting it." He explains.

"Necromancy." I sigh, and he nods.

"How Dumbledore? We are thirteen, and I've never read any books or learned anything on the subject." He demands, making me shoot him a tired smile.

"Looks like you're pretty alright considering you've started your typical grilling." I chuckle. His eyes soften slightly then they harden instantly.

He eyes me with a disgusted look.

"Are-" He pauses and crinkles his nose in repulsion. This makes me raise a brow in amusement.

"Are you alright?" He spits the words like they were poison. I laugh at his expression.

"You know, asking someone if they are alright doesn't have to be such a painful process." I muse yawning. "But yes, I'm alright. Just tired." I answer his question, noticing how his still body became a bit less stiff than before.

I notice that my hand was still grasped loosely in his own. It rested on his chest, close to his heart.

I don't move it.

"I think the goblet gave us the powers," I tell, him yawning again, and I rest my head on his chest, exhausted.

"Goblet? The Hufflepuff Cup?" He demands and I nod absentmindedly. I knew he wasn't pushing me off because he needed information.

"The cup made me a parseltongue, too, if you remember."

"Ah, so that's what happened." He breathes, eyeing me in intrigue. "So it made us capable of Necromancy." He concludes.

"Did you get any other weird powers?" I ask him.

"No." He says and eyes me. "Did you?" He wonders, eyes staring up at the ceiling. His voice was eager.

Should I tell him? I don't think it would hurt. He hadn't shown any signs of being downright evil.... other than the fact that he was a complete asshole most of the time and his beliefs on blood purity were absurd. I was too tired to lie and could feel my eyes shutting.

"I'm a Seer." I whisper and then I fall asleep.

" I whisper and then I fall asleep 

~~~~~~~~ Third Pov ~~~~~~~~

She's a what?

Tom stares at the girl fast asleep on him. His lip curls in distaste. He didn't blame the pathetic girl. She'd looked dead on her feet.

She'd been worried about him.

A Seer. A Parseltongue. A Necromancer.

Tom knew he was staring at one of the most powerful witches in the world.

He'd be invincible if he had her by his side.

He noticed he still had her hand in his.

He doesn't move it.

It was nice to have someone know his past and understand. Dumbledore didn't pity him to his immense surprise. She'd looked at him with respect.

He couldn't help but feel respect towards her as well.

He saw the scars that adjourned her body. There were even some on her face. He knew she'd had it much much worse than he did. He wondered what had happened to her parents.

He glanced at the scar that lay on the side of her face beside her left eyebrow. She usually hid it behind her long bangs.

There were immensely much prettier girls in the school. She was nothing much to look at.

She was highly intelligent, though. Exceedingly so. Her witty comebacks were intriguing, and the immense power and skill she had in magic were enough to let Tom know that this girl needed to be on his side. She needed to fight with him and not against him.

He needed to get the stupid girl to care for him.

He was succeeding.

Tom didn't care. He couldn't. He knew it was physically impossible for him to grow to care for someone.

He was an empty shell of a person.

But he had a soft spot.

He couldn't deny it.

The girl in front of him made him feel lighter whenever she grinned at him....whenever she looked at him like he was the only person that mattered.

Facing the darkness he had inside him was easy when she was arguing with him, or casting hexes at his friends.

He couldn't even feel the darkness when she held his hand.

He'd wanted to get rid of that bratty kid of Grindelwald's the second she had started following him around.

The thing was still healthy and alive because of the girl asleep on him right this instant.

Valentine Dumbledore was his soft spot.


	33. Dippet is an Idiot

I wake up still asleep on Tom.

I stumble back in surprise and horror, hitting the floor quite hard. "Ow," I grumble, and someone hauls me up by my arm.

"Morning, Oceana." Avery's voice rings in my ear. I look up to see Avery smirking at me.

"Morning," I grumble, my eyes narrowing at the awful nickname. He was mocking my damn eye colour. The imbecile.

He helps me move to sit on my own bed.

"You looked cozy." He grins a cat-like smile that has me glaring at me.

"We were exhausted," I say, and Avery rummages through his bag and hands me something. It was a bagel. I look up at him in surprise, and he scowls, a red tint on his cheek.

"I thought you all would be hungry." He admits, making me smile at him.

That was incredibly thoughtful.

"Thank you," I say sincerely, and he hands me the bagel with a smile of his own. Abby grumbles profanities under her breath.

"Why are you guys awake and talking so loudly!?" She demands, annoyed before her eyes flit over to my own, and she squeals, making Pan and Chris shoot up in surprise. "VALENTINE!!" She screams and almost jumps on me, but Avery grabs her.

"Oceana is still hospitalized. Don't break all her bones." He gives Abby a look, making her flush in embarrassment.

"Val, are you alright?" Pan asks with a yawn, and I nod.

"Somewhat rejuvenated," I answer, taking a bite from my bagel.

"Honestly, I don't think I've ever met a group with such idiots in it than this one." Tom snarls. We all whip around to stare at the boy. His eyes were hard, and he was gazing at us all like he wouldn't enjoy anything better than cursing us.

"Riddle." Chris greets the Slytherin and Riddle sneers.

"Killick," Tom responds, not even looking at my blonde friend.

"Avery. Where is that bastard Malfoy? I need to teach him a lesson. I'm going to boil his blood till he begs for mercy. He indirectly placed me here." Tom snarls, a cruel smirk on his face. Everyone freezes at his words except for myself and Avery. I assume we were both too used to Riddle's threats.

Avery shrugs.

"I have no clue. I've been in here with you lot since yesterday." Avery states. "Lestrange is keeping Walburga out of here." He adds.

"Oh, thank god." Abby breathes. "I would've punched her." My friend says sour.

"You should." Riddle muses smoothly, catching the bagel that Avery threw at him. Abby glances at Riddle, eyes wide.

"Did he just-?" She whispers at me, and I nod, mouth filled with my bagel.

"Mmmmhmmm."

"He talked to me." Abby almost screeches, making me give her a look.

"You two, alright?" Avery asks both Tom and me.

We both shrug at the same time.

"Sure."

"I wasn't even weakened in the first place." Tom scoffs, making me give him an industrious look.

"Good. You are both awake." A healer walks in. It was the same healer who had helped me my first day here. I learned her name was Madame Strout.

"Any pain? Tiredness? Aching? Bruises?" She asks us in a firm tone, daring us to lie to her. Tom and I both shake our heads. She gazes at us for a second and then her eyes soften. "You both singlehandedly saved Ms. Ollivander's life. That spell was performed impeccably." She praises us, making Tom sit up straighter, an air of arrogance returning to him.

I smile up at the healer, not knowing what to say.

"Headmaster Dippet requires both of you in his office at once the second I discharge you. This is me discharging you two. The password is Lemon-trout. Now go! Hurry along!!" She shoos us away, moving to check on Greta.

I watch as she checks her vitals.

"Will she be alright?" I ask the question most of us were thinking.

Madame Strout smiles at me, her brown eyes warm and kind. "Your friend will be just fine, Ms.Dumbledore. Yourself and Mr.Riddle made sure of that." And with those parting words, she walks away.

I get to my feet, putting on Abby's slippers.

"I'm borrowing these," I tell her, and she waves me away.

"Go ahead. I'm staying here with Greta and the rest until class starts." She answers, making me nod.

"I'll be back," I promise.

"Dumbledore come along. I don't like waiting." Tom scowls, and I roll my eyes.

"You don't like much of anything." I muse back, walking alongside him.

"Why don't you put something more decent on. You look like a harlot." Tom looks at me in disgust, and I look at him wide-eyed, rage filling me.

I smack him. "You DID NOT just call me that!!" I seethe and smack his shoulder again. "You have no right to call me that! I am wearing shorts!!! SHORTS!!!!" I yell, and his face deepens into a scowl.

He doesn't respond, and I give him a disgusted look of my own before I start to march ahead of him.

He was silent the entire way to Dippet's office. "Lemon-trout," I demand at the opening to the Headmaster's office, and the staircase begins to unfold descending to allow us entry. I walk up the steps, still furious at Riddle.

Entering the door, I see Headmaster Dippet staring at me. Tom steps through the door behind me and Dippet claps his hands in delight. "Hogwarts Heroes!" He booms and Tom and I stare at each other in surprise.

"Pardon?" Riddle asks, putting on his usual charming facade.

"You two saved a student from being murdered!" He cheers and steps up to engulf us in a hug. Tom looked like he wanted to push the old man down the stairs. "Had Ms.Ollivander been killed, we would have had to close the school," Dippet explains.

"Close the school? Close Hogwarts?" Tom repeats in barely concealed horror.

"Yes, my boy! But all is well. She was saved. Had you two been even a second late, she would've died. Also, Ms. Dumbledore, the condition of the Great Hall has been restored, so no need to be wary about the wall you destroyed." Dippet chuckles as if the matter itself was a joke.

"Excuse me, sir, but how is Malfoy going to be punished?" I ask, raising a brow and sitting on the couch beside me, arms crossed.

Dippet stares at me with a smile. "I think the young lad had learned his lesson. However, he'll be serving detentions for the rest of the year." He sits across me. I stare at him in disbelief.

"He hurt my friend.... almost killed her, and he's getting a mere slap on the wrist and detention!?" I seethe, standing up in a fit of rage.

"Well, he will be getting a talk to from ministry officials. But considering Ms. Ollivander is his fiancee, our hands are tied." He tries to explain, making my hands flicker with magic.

"That is bullshit!" I snarl.

"A girl... YOUR student almost died!! She's under your protection, Headmaster." I snarl sarcastically. "So if anything happens to her or ANY of the damn students here. That's your neck on the line!"

Headmaster Dippet sighs, leaning back in his seat. "Valentine I'm aware of that thank you very much. I'd much appreciate it if you showed a tad ounce of respect for your Headmaster as well." He tells me, eyes hard. Mine just harden even more.

"Don't try to intimidate me." I laugh, harshly. "Tell me what punishment Malfoy is going to get, or I'll walk out of here this second and give him one myself!"

"Ms. Dumbled-" Dippet was seething, but he was interrupted by Tom.

"It has been a truly traumatizing event Headmaster Dippet, and I'm sure Ms.Dumbledore is just severely emotional at seeing her friend in such a manner. She just requests that the proper punishment be appointed to Mr. Malfoy, who had indeed attempted to not only kill but sexually harass Ms.Ollivander." Tom strolls to stand beside where I was sitting, leaning on the arm of the couch I was on.

"Perhaps a restraining spell for the rest of the year and a threat to throw the lad in Azkaban," Tom demands, voice so smooth it was like silk. He gazed at Dippet with such natural authority; I knew Dippet would not refuse.

I'm silent, bewildered he'd stepped in.

"Very well. Mr. Riddle, Ms. Dumbledore." Dippet's eyes go from one of us to the other. "I will do all I can to ensure that Ms. Ollivander is not harmed. An owl has been sent to her family explaining all that has occurred. They'll be arriving shortly to check on their daughter." He informs us and then points to the pair of us.

"You two are the brightest students I've ever had the honour of teaching. I can see how close you two are. Make sure you stick together." Dippet advises.

"The world is a monstrous place to spend alone."


	34. A Stunned Black

I walk down from Dippet's office, fuming.

"He was going to let Malfoy go with a slap on his arse!" I gape in surprise, and Riddle rolls his eyes.

"We both know that even if he did that, you'd hunt down the blonde coward and torture him to unconsciousness as you did with Grindelwald's followers." He preens like a panther.

I glare at him. I was still angry about him calling me a harlot.

"I'm still furious with you, you loathsome, foul-"

"Apologies."

I freeze. Did Tom Riddle...the Tom Riddle just apologize?

I blink in shock.

"What?" I demand, making Tom sigh.

"I'm not repeating myself, Dumbledore." He snarls, walking away hands in his jogger pockets. A grin slowly spreads on my features, and I'm running to catch up with him.

I grab his arm, swinging myself forward, as we walked along.

He didn't brush me off.

"How do you want to torture him?!" I ask, eagerly. Tom looks down at me in amusement, eyes fond.

The look was gone in a second, though.

He shrugs, eyes darting forward. "Ollivander is your friend. You can choose." He drawls, making me think.

"He put both of us in the Hospital Wing though.....so we should split it 50/50?"

Tom looked like he agreed, "Fair enough."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I hum slightly to myself as I headed to the Great Hall. It'd been a couple of days, and Greta was still knocked out. It was my turn to get food for my friends.

Walking towards the Hufflepuff table, I see Malfoy sporting a broken leg and arm, with several thousand bruises adorning his body. I couldn't help but smirk. He'd gotten a taste of his own medicine. Malfoy looked up to meet my eyes and instantly looks down.

Asshole.

Hurting, my friend. I swear I would've done much worse had it not been for several professors almost catching us. Tom made it so no one could track the incidence back to us. He had to teach me that spell.

I see Tom give me a slow smirk, and I give him a bright smile back.

I grab a couple of desserts, on a considerable arse plate and then grab a plate to pile it high with sandwiches. I stroll away from the table only to stop when Walburga appears in front of me.

She sneers, and I look around me to see two Slytherins behind me and one flanking Sirius Black's mother.

This woman was Harry's godfather's mom. Damn, that was a mouthful.

"I saw how you looked at Tom." She sneers. "Stay away from him." She snarls, eyes blazing. "He's mine. MINE!" She shrieks, and I actually step back a step, questioning her mental sanity.

"You are aware Tom's a person, right? He's not something you can own." I muse, raising a brow at her. She steps forward to stare me down, and I let out a loud groan.

"Can you leave me alone. I get it, you're obsessed with Riddle. Just stop it. I beg of you. It's so belittling." I demand, making her sneer at me. That's it. This bitch was annoying the hell out of me.

"HEY TOM RIDDLE!!" I shout, and everyone moves to look at me. Tom's eyes flit up from his book, eyes narrowing on my form.

"WALBURGA IS FREAKING IN LOVE WITH YOU, AND SHE'S THREATENING ME BECAUSE OF HER ADORANCE FOR YOUR DAMN MAJESTY"S AFFECTIONS!!!. ARE YOU INTO HER!???" I scream.

Everyone moves to stare at Riddle.

Walburga's face goes a deep red rushing to shove me over.

"Don't. Just don't. I'll shove this plate so far down your shirt, you'll be smelling like tuna for days." I murmur, hearing some heels rushing at me from behind. I hop up on the Hufflepuff table only to see the two girls go flying, as they didn't expect me to move out of the way.

"TOM ANSWER WALBURGA'S DAMN LOVE DECREE!"

Tom was glaring at me.

So was Walburga.

I burst out laughing.

Walburga points her wand at me. "Shut up!!!" She hisses, her blush extending to her neck.

"You didn't have to be a bitch to me. Had you acted like a real human being and came to me, telling me about your crush, I would've actually understood...maybe even assisted you in becoming closer to Riddle." I tell her in a deadpanned voice.

"But you acted like a downright child. Bossing around all those girls trying to bully me?! HA!!!" I laugh out loud and then step down from the table to meet her at eye level.

"You can't bully someone who has fought demons and survived."

I lived in an orphanage my whole life. I was abused. I was disowned. I was thrown away like trash as a mere baby. I lost my parents. They were murdered.

I lost my sister and my brother-in-law. My niece and nephew were almost killed, and I couldn't protect them.

I could use black magic that she would never even dream of attempting. I am part- freaking-demon. I could tear off her head just by muttering a damn spell.

I was sent back in freaking time to save the damn wizarding world from destruction twice.

This prissy, disgusting girl who would grow to disown my nephew's godfather was not going to intimidate me.

I walk past her, still holding the plates in my hand and walk backwards, staring at her. I think I ruined the moment by getting hair stuck in my mouth.

"I'm going to destroy you, Dumbledore. I'm going to make your life miserable. I warned you away from him, but you didn't listen." Walburga hisses, and she just pisses me off even more.

"YOU DIDN'T ANSWER THE QUESTION RIDDLE!!!" I scream.

"NO!!!" Riddle shouts, and I smirk at Walburga Black.

"Enjoy your dinner." I grin at her and walk out the Great Hall, not once looking back.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I walk outside, hugging my coat closer to my body. The second I step outside Hogwarts bounds, I apparate.

Landing in the back of Aberforth's Inn, I'm instantly tacked by a little munchkin. "MOM!!!" Ariana screeches, and I grab her in a hug.

"Hello, my adorable Ariana!!" I coo, lifting her into my arms. She hugs me so tightly. She hugged me like it'd be her last time embracing me in a while. I felt awful. I should've come to visit her sooner.

"How is it going? How are you liking the Inn?" I ask Ariana, moving us to a quieter corner. She grabs my hand with her tiny one, afraid to let go. Her eyes stare at me in awe.

"I love it!!! Uncle Aberforth is really nice! He even started to teach me to read!!" She squeals. My heart breaks.

"Really, what books have you read so far?" I ask her, and she hurries over to the counter, her tiny feet sprinting back to me. She hops on my lap and hands me a huge ass chapter book.

"Aberforth is making you read Shakespeare's entire works?" I ask in shock. She nods eagerly.

"I'm on the one where a brave soldier man is in love with this rich and beautiful woman!" I gape at her.

"Tell me you aren't reading Othello?"

"YEAH!! That's the name!!" She shrieks, and I grumble profanities.

"I'm killing Aberforth. He's reading Othello to a five-year-old. A wonderful family I have."

"Mom... Where's dad? Did he not want to visit?" Ariana asks me. I see her lip begin to tremble, and my heart winces in sadness.

"Oh no, sweetie he was busy when I decided to come to visit. I'm sure he'll come to see you soon." I promise, knowing it was hopeless. Entirely hopeless. Tom wanted nothing to do with the poor kid. He'd rather feed her to a bunch of snakes then even show her an ounce of care.

"Oh," Ariana says in a hopeless voice, and I bite my lip.

"Next time I come for a visit, I'll bring him. He probably misses you." I say. Probably misses tormenting her most likely. I'd have to curse the guy just to get him here.

The stunning smile I get in return to my words, has me promising to myself that I'd drag the asshole by his ear if he didn't come.

I watch as people go in and out of the Inn as Ariana and I just chat about everything and anything. After most of the customers have left, Aberforth joins us, handing each of us a mug of hot chocolate.

I'd given Aberforth a piece of my mind about the Othello incident, but he just laughs my worried away.

I enjoyed my time with the two of them, leaving after a couple hours with the promise to visit soon.

Walking through the night, I hum under my breath, walking towards Hogwart's grounds.

A spell explodes over my head.

I whip around, hands coming up to protect my head, and see couple wizards and witches glaring at me.

One of them steps up, and I watch in horror as they all march towards me, wands raised.

The man who had led the attack moves closer and gives me a disgusting smirk. I couldn't help but blanch at the rows and rows of rotten, stained teeth.

"Sorry bout this, dearie, but our boss wants a word."


	35. A Whirlwind of Fire

They were surrounding me.

I'd tried making a break for the borders, but I'd almost had my head taken off.

My wand was already in my hand, and I was eyeing all of my attackers. There were five of them.

Two females and three males. Marvellous.

This day was going so well too...

"Who wants me?" I bark at the man who had spoken earlier, and the man has the decency to shrug.

"I have no clue. I'm just capturing you for the money."

I feel the blood drain from my face.

"Money?" I demand, already knowing what he was going to boast about but dreading it.

"There's a bounty on your head, dearie. You and that boy. A thousand galleons per child, to whoever captures you and hands you over to The Black Circle. Then they hand you over to whoever wants you dead." The man snarls, laughing like some evil mastermind.

Oh, he picked the wrong chick to try to kidnap.

I knew this was all Grindelwald's doing.

Asshole. I really wanted to poke his damn mismatched eyes out and feed them to Hepzibah's panthers.

They attack in synchronized unison.

"Abaddon!" I yell, getting ready to fight the assholes.

"I'm right here, my child."

As one Abaddon and I reflect every spell that had come barreling our way. With single swings of my hands, people were flying left and right.

Spells of fire and air were muttered from my lips, causing a whirlwind of flames to erupt all around me.

It swoops up the mere wizards that had tried to kidnap me for money.

"YOU DARE ATTACK ME!!!" Abaddon and I thunder.

Lightning hits the last man standing. The man who had attacked me first. The one who'd told me about the bounty.

How proud he'd been.

He trembled like a baby out in the cold.

"Devil." He cries, staring at us. He starts screaming for help.

"The devil?" Abaddon and I scoff. "No... I am much much worse."

"Mercy!!! Please!!" He was full-on sobbing now.

Pathetic.

"You would not have shown me mercy. Why should I show you any?" I snarl, and then I mutter a single word that has the man feeling the worse pain he'd ever feel.

"Excrucia"

Abaddon reels back, and we both stare at the screaming women and men around us in pity and disgust.

"Quite pathetic, aren't they?"

"Exceedingly." I agree. "Why are people bad, Abaddon?" I ask, sadness swopping in on me like a bird.

"Because, young one, they seek happiness.... and their happiness is mistaken for evil."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

It was around eleven pm and I was pissed off.

My head and Tom's were up for freaking bounties!!!

I walk towards the Slytherin dungeons, watching some first years walk towards the entrance. The only way to get into the Slytherin dorms was to use a password. One I was going to get from some unexpected first years.

"Legilimens," I whisper, and I enter into one of the first years' minds.

I walk towards the entryway, and a wave of nostalgia hits me. I missed being Slytherin. I missed hanging out with Ettie in our dorms and having daily sleepovers. I missed my niece.

She and Harry were the most important people in my life. The twins were everything to me.

"Blood Purity," I state, and the doors swung open. I couldn't help the smile that curved my face when I stepped into the common room.

A memory of my niece and I shrieking in utter laughter enters my mind before I remember why I was there in the first place.

Shouts of surprise ignite throughout the dorms when people start to realize that a Hufflepuff was in the Slytherin dungeons.

A beat-up, sweaty, flushed Hufflepuff.

I ignore them and march up the steps towards the male dorms, swinging the door open before I cringe.

The stench was awful...honestly, do these boys even bathe.

Walking past the first and second years, I come to the third year bunks and instantly spot Riddle and his gang. They surrounded him like he was king.

Marching over, I ignore the freakishly girlish shrieks I was hearing whenever someone saw me, and I plop down on Riddle's bed with a mad look.

"We have a problem."

Tom was staring at me with immense surprise. I realize Avery, Lestrange and three other boys were staring at me mouths agape.

"Oh, so you five are Tom's gang. Pleasure. I'm Valentine Dumbledore, the girl, who, in addition to Tom here, now has a freaking bounty on her head!!!!" I rage.

The five looked flabbergasted.

"I need to sit down," Avery admits, making me glance at him weirdly.

"Dumbledore, explain." Tom orders and I sigh.

"I went to visit Ariana." I begin to say, but Tom interrupts me.

"Why on earth would you do that? That thing is utterly intolerable. Why would you go there alone? " He scowls, and I purse my lips, eyes blazing.

"I don't always need you attached to my hip everywhere I go!" I snap at him, making the asshole smirk.

"Do you want me attached at your hip?"

"I want you to go snog Walburga. Maybe her snivelling, whiny arse can get you to shut up and not interrupt someone when they're telling you something drastically important!!"

Lestrange lets out an amused snort.

"Anyways... So I went to visit Ariana at the Inn, and then I try to go home when suddenly five people are surrounding me. They wanted to kidnap my arse. I got some information before I fought them off and tortured the fuckers." I give a smirk, making everyone except Tom take a step back.

"LANGUAGE!!" I hear Abaddon screech in my head. "Oh, calm down." I think at my demon.

"So apparently both you and I have bounties over our head. Anyone who captures us has to give us up to the Black Circle for a thousand galleons each. The Black Circle- sounds like a cliche group of devil worshipers to me and they-"

"Focus, Dumbledore."

Avery and Lestrange laugh at that. So do the other three strangers.

"Fine. The Black Circle, terrifying actually- they probably have scorched or burned-"

"Don't say what I think you're about to say," Tom demands. "These kids are more immature than toddlers." He scowls.

I glare at him. "The Black wannabe hipster cowboys will then hand us over to the person who will ultimately want to kill us.." I muse, giving Tom a look and making the boys around us grow silent. He knew exactly who wanted us dead.

Tom sinks back into his bed, arms crossed and deep in thought. His legs were stretched out. He was wearing black socks that touched my hips as I was sitting near the edge of his bed. His legs were longer than I'd thought.

"How do you want to take down the Black Circle?" I ask Tom, and he looks up at me in surprise.

"Take them down!? Are you mad, woman?" Avery demands, his brown eyes looking at me in disbelief.

"Well yeah. I'm not going to be walking around all day wondering ... Oh!! Who will my next kidnapper be!? I hope he's hot!!! NO! That only happens in god-awful books. That's not cool or romantic or even a tad bit funny. It's terrifying." I snap.

"I'm going to destroy them before they can touch me or any of the people I care about."

"I think she's right." A black-haired boy pipes up. He was in the center of attention, so his lips purse and his brown eyes narrow.

"Thank you, Black Raven." I grin in delight and the guy chuckles.

"Rosier at your service, miss."

"If you already knew you were going to attack The Black Circle, why even bother coming here. You've caused your fair share of heart attacks here." Tom sneers, making me roll my eyes.

"Just thought you should know you had a bounty over your head before you most probably got kidnapped."

His eyes narrow in anger.

"They wouldn't even dare come near me." He snarls.

"Wow, arrogant much. Yes, they would " I raise a brow and scoff.

"And it's a lot of money too. You guys might be in deep shit." Another stranger friend of Tom thinks out loud. "I'm Mulciber, by the way. That idiot in the corner is Nott." The redhead turns his blue eyes to gesture to a shy boy with brown hair in the corner. His grey eyes were glaring at something behind us, most probably thinking about the bomb I'd unleashed.

"What happened to the people who attacked you Val?" Avery asks, and I smirk, leaning back on Tom's bed.

"Probably still being scorched to death."

Silence.

"You can be severely terrifying, Dumbledore... you know that?" Lestrange cringes, making me send him a bright smile.

"Oh, I'm aware."

"How on earth did you even get up here?" Rosier asks, brown eyes genuinely curious.

"A first year told me," I say, moving my head to the side to send Tom a side wink.

Tom shakes his head, already knowing how I'd really gotten up here.

"What do you propose, Dumbledore?" Tom asks me.

I could see the contemplation in his eyes. His stance was rigid and closed off.

"I was going to get myself kidnapped, actually."

"No, seriously?" Avery lets out a laugh, and so does everyone else except Tom. He met my eyes straight on and knew I was serious.

"Shut up." Tom seethes, silencing the group in seconds. "Dumbledore that plan can go wrong in so many ways." He sighs, making Avery look between us like a deer caught in headlights.

"You're serious!!" He squeaks. "You're actually going to get yourself kidnapped?!" He looked ready to smack me upside my head.

"It's the only way I'll get to The Black Circle without having to do all the work of researching. I'm taking the lazy way out, actually." I think, before nodding, and taking my shoes off on the floor, before pulling myself up entirely onto Tom's bed.

"Clever. Then we take them down from the inside out." Tom states out loud. I raise a brow.

"We? I was under the impression you were too regal to join me." I scoff, making him narrow his eyes at me.

"You wouldn't last a second without me there."

"I lasted around a solid five today actually, and the people who attacked me are most probably dead."

"They dared to think they could defeat me. I need to teach them a lesson." Tom retorts back, changing the direction of the conversation entirely.

"When do we do this?" I ask Tom, and he thinks for a second.

"Weekend."

"What about us? What can we do to help?" Malciber says, making me chuckle.

"Oh, nothing. Just sit back and relax. You should just call the Ministry and tell them that the Black Circle's been compromised. The lot of them might even end up slaughtered." I give Tom a knowing look, waving a dismissive hand at the boys I stifled a yawn as I laid my head on Tom's shins. The last thing I hear before I fall asleep is Tom's voice saying,

"No doubt, I'll slaughter them."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Third Pov ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

"Did she just fall asleep?" Nott hisses, staring at the raven-haired girl who was asleep on their leader's legs.

Tom stole a look at her and scoffs, stretching his arms to grab a book. He props it open and waves his hand absentmindedly. "She falls asleep rather quickly. Especially if she's exhausted." Tom answers and Avery gives him a weird look.

"She's a Hufflepuff. This is the boy's Slytherin dorms!" Avery demands, freaking out.

There was a girl in pink bunny socks, black sweatpants and a blue hoodie on Tom Riddle's bed.

"We can sneak her out early in the morning." Mulciber shrugs. "It's not that big of a deal." Rosier scoffs and then shakes his head.

"Where is Tom going to sleep then?"

"On my bed," Tom replies, not bothering to look up from his book. Everyone looks at him with wide eyes.

"Should we move her? That looks highly uncomfortable." Avery points to the girl.

"She is resting on my legs, Avery. Move her yourself." Tom barks, anger swirling in his black orbs.

"Shhhhh!!!" Avery demands, giving Tom a look. "She's asleep! I'll move the bunny sock girl, I guess." Avery scowls, hauling the girl into his arms.

Unconsciously Valentine rests her head on his shoulder.

Tom's eyes flit from Valentine to Avery and then back. He gets to his feet, throwing his book aside. "Hand her over." He orders at Avery.

Avery gives him a weird look. "No man, that's alright... I can put her on my bed, and I'll sleep on the couch."

Tom gives him a lethal look. "Hand her over, Avery." Tom snarls and then proceeds to try to grab the girl back from his classmate. Avery hands her over, afraid of dropping the petite girl to the floor. Valentine slumps over in Tom's hands.

"Damn, she's a heavy sleeper." Nott points out.

"Go to bed, the lot of you. I'll take care of this." Tom orders, watching as everyone left, giving him weird looks.

Should he throw her out?

He watches her asleep, head on his shoulder, and a sense of satisfaction fills him. The disgust and rage he'd felt at seeing her with Avery confused him. He'd felt more empty than he'd ever felt before.

The emptiness shocked him.

He had an irrational need to kill Avery after that.

He sets the girl in his arms, properly down on his bed, tucking her in. Tom grits his teeth and stares at her in disgust.

He sits down on his bed, beside her sleeping form, and couldn't help but stare at her.

She looked quite peaceful.

Tom was well aware of his condition. His inability to love or care for someone. He had never felt anything towards anyone...not even towards his so-called friends. He knew that his very brain was unable to produce the chemicals an individual needed to feel emotion or, more specifically, love.

So why was Valentine Dumbledore suddenly all he could think of?

Why did he want to rip Avery's arms off for even touching her?

Tom relaxes back into his bed, making sure to stay over his covers, so he didn't accidentally touch the girl beside him. This was intriguing to him. Whatever was happening to Tom was alluring him.

Perhaps Tom didn't want to face his darkness alone anymore.

Perhaps the fact that Valentine wanted to fight the darkness with him made him want to start fighting again. He'd given up to the darkness years ago....but now he didn't want to anymore.

The thought made him turn down to look at Valentine.

He grabs his book, shaking his head in anger.

"I must be going mad."


	36. No Breath to Breathe

I wake up only to freeze.

I was still in the Slytherin dungeons.

In the Slytherin boy dorms.

In Tom Riddle's bed.

I was hyperventilating.

"Calm down, Dumbledore." Tom snaps from his sleeping position beside me. My hearts warm slightly at his consideration. He'd slept without a warm blanket for the night just so I wouldn't feel uncomfortable at the fact that we'd been sharing a bed.

"You woke me up." He scowls, eyes still closed. "What time is it you insufferable fool?"" He snarls at me, making me roll my eyes.

"It's around five in the morning," I whisper back at him.

"Good enough. You need to leave before anyone sees you." He orders, moving to grab the blanket off me. I laugh and give his shoulder a little tap.

I move to face him, and his eyes snap forward, eyeing me in disregard. The notion has me smiling. "Thank you, Tom," I whisper and hop down to put my shoes on.

He grabs my arm, stopping me. I turn around to see him sitting up. His grey shirt was crumpled, and his hair was all over the place. The sight has me stifling a laugh. Guess the perfect Tom Riddle could have imperfections too.

My eyes meet his, and I tilt my head in confusion. "Yeah?"

"Get some sleep." He answers me, voice hoarse. "I don't want to see you in the Great Hall before nine. You'll ruin my mood." He snaps at me and then falls back into his bed.

I couldn't help but chuckle at his antics.

I shiver slightly, hugging my hoodie closer to my body as I made my way outside the Slytherin dungeon.

No one saw me thankfully, and I move to the Great Hall. I was the only one awake. As if anyone sane would be awake by five in the morning. I take a seat at the table, taking out my ponytail and rubbing my hands through my hair. Ow. It always hurt when I ended up forgetting to take my ponytail out before I slept.

A plate of pancakes and syrup arrives in front of me. I turn around to see Albus shooting me a smile. "Hello, cousin."

"Hi, Albus." I smile back at him.

Albus moves to sit across from me, moving his long beard out of the way to do so. "How have your classes been?" He asks. I know he was preparing for the more pressing questions, ones that involved the fate of the wizarding world.

"Good. Classes have been good." I answer, making him raise a brow.

"Better than good as I hear. You are at the top of your classes." He tells me, making me shake my head.

"Nah, I know I'm competing for the top spot with Riddle." I grin at Albus, making his eyes twinkle in mirth.

"How are things?" He muses, giving me a look. "You appear to be getting exceedingly close to Mr. Riddle." He gives me a look.

I give him one of my own looks. "I was told to stop Lord Voldemort, not Tom Riddle," I answer harshly.

"You seem to know what you are doing."

I purse my lips, moving to lather my pancakes with syrup. I take a bite out of my pancake soup and nod up at him. "Of course I do. You chose me for a reason." I say, giving him a smile.

Albus gives me a nod. "I'm always here to help you, Valentine. It doesn't matter what the problem is, I'll be there to help."

"Thank you, professor. I appreciate it." I tell him, making him stand up, leaning over to give my shoulder a pat.

"Enjoy the rest of your day Ms.Dumbledore." Albus shoots me a smile and walks away. I stare at his retreating back, deep in thought.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I had moved to the girl's bathroom.

The abandoned girl's bathroom.

My cauldron was in front of me, and my potions book open to my side. I knew how to brew this potion. I brewed it by Hermione's side in second year.

The Polyjuice Potion.

I was starting to brew it for Tom.

I had an idea of how I was going to get Tom out of that horrid muggle orphanage he despised. I knew muggle laws. I knew they wouldn't allow Tom to leave except if he had been adopted.

That was what I was going to do. I was going to adopt Tom Riddle.

Well, not me, per se..... Aberforth was, but he isn't going to know until the last second.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I had finished the first steps of the potion and left it brewing in a hidden corner of the washroom, disgusting it with a wave of my hand. It appeared to everyone else as a potted plant, but to me... it was my potion.

I walk to the Infirmary, moving to check in on Greta.

Sitting by her side, I notice an elderly man asleep in the bed beside hers. I instantly recognized him. He was Gerrick Ollivander.... the man who had given my wand to me back in first year.

Yew wood with a phoenix feather core, 12 ¼" with reasonably supple flexibility.

I couldn't help but smile at the sight.

"Hey, Greta," I whisper, grabbing her hand. We all came in here to check on her after classes. Apparently, her body physically shut down because of an emotional block. She'd been out for a couple of days, and I was exceedingly concerned.

"Abaddon." I think. "Would we be able to wake her up?" I ask.

"No. That... That is her choice. She might spend years unconscious...she might wake up tomorrow. We are not going to influence her free will." Abaddon replies and I sigh, gripping Greta's hand tighter.

"Come on, Greta. Please wake up. We're all waiting for you here." I whisper.

My gaze flickers upwards to see Ollivander staring at me. I almost fall out of my chair in shock. "H-Hello, sir," I say quickly, making Ollivander smile.

"You must be Ms. Dumbledore. The only one of my daughter's best friends I haven't met." He smiles, getting up to shake my hand. "You're also the young woman that saved my Greta's life." He chokes up, making me give him a soft smile.

"I'm just relieved I got there in time with Mr. Riddle," I answer, making Ollivander tear up.

"I never wanted her to be bound so young." He admits, staring at his daughter with a haunted look on his face. "My son refused, as well. He also goes to Hogwarts, you know. My wife insisted. Some absurd thing about needing the two of them to get to know each other better." He scoffs, moving to slump into his chair.

I remembered Pan telling me Greta had a brother. Ollivander must've seen the confusion on my face. "My son was chosen for an exchange program. He decided to study at Durmstrang for this semester. That's why he couldn't come to check on his sister. I told him she'd woken up, and it wasn't even serious, so he wouldn't worry about her." Ollivander defends his son's absence. I nod my head, eyes widening.

"Oh. I see."

"May I see your wand," Ollivander asks suddenly, and I blink, watching as he pointed to the wand in my ponytail.

"Oh. Yes, of course." I say, curious as to if he'd recognize my wand. He probably wouldn't. He hadn't sold it to me yet. The thought has me passing my prized possession over to Ollivander with a cautious smile.

He eyes it with such confusion on his face, I have to stifle my laughter.

"I don't remember ever making a wand like this." He purses his lips. "This...This is an Ollivander made wand." He tells me, not asking, but I nod all the same.

"Yew wood and a phoenix feather core... Curious. Not a pair that usually goes well together." He thinks, and his next words impress me grandly. "You must be impeccable in the dark arts."

I nod slowly. "Yes. Yes. I had to be very powerful to save your daughter's life. The spell Tom and I used was really strong." I muse and then look at him.

"Is their marriage going to be terminated?" I ask, making him wince.

"I- I want it to be-"

"You want it to be terminated? Mr. Ollivander! Your daughter was seconds from death. Had I not gotten there in time, Greta would have died and been sexually assaulted by the person you want to wed her off to." I snarl, standing up. My eyes blazed in anger and Ollivander looked so crushed; my rage fades like colour did on a rainy day.

Tears come to the old man's eyes. "My baby girl. My little girl. My poor.... poor child." He sobs.

"I can't undo the marriage. They'd kill us."

My heart stops.

I stare at him in horror. "What do you mean they'd kill you?" I ask slowly, and he shakes his head. 

"I shouldn't get a child involved. You saved my daughter's life and all I'll be repaying you with is your murder." He shakes his head in utter sorrow.

My murder?

What the hell was going on with the Malfoys and the Ollivanders.

I don't even think I enter his mind, with a single thought.

The poor child. I've already said too much. Grindelwald will kill her now. He'll read my mind and find out how much the girl knows.

My daughter is to be wed to a monster.

I can't even fight for her safety.

They kidnapped my wife.....they kidnapped my own son.

Grindelwald and that horrid Black Circle.

How could such a family like the Malfoys follow him? They follow Grindelwald around like mutts. 

I'll never tell him where it is.

Never.

I now know why they call them the deathly hallows

Loathsome, Backstabbing IDIOTS.

I retract from his mind, and my eyes glance down to Greta's in horror.

"Holy shit. That was a whirlwind, wasn't it." Abaddon sniff in my head.

Tears whelm in my eyes, and I stifle a sob.

Such pain.

Such pain Ollivander had.

For good reason.

"I- I just remembered I have somewhere I need to be. It was an honour meeting, you, sir." I tell him, and he sends me a smile. It hid agony.

It was fake.

I assumed it hurt him to even try to fake a smile nowadays.

"Yes, of course, my child. I can't thank you enough for saving my Greta. I'll always be in your debt." He lunges to engulf me in a hug. I hug the man back. He needed a hug.

He needed a thousand hugs, actually.

"No. No sir. It was my absolute pleasure." I smile up at him, and he sends me along with a pat on the shoulder.

I walk out of the Infirmary, and instantly the tears start to flood again.

I was feeling his pain.

I couldn't stop.

It hurt so much.

It wracked inside me like a shipwreck before sinking. It gushed in my heart like a stab wound.

I start to sprint away, trying to get away from everyone and everything.

I slam straight into something and go sprawling on my arse. My hand goes up to clutch my heart instead of my head, and the tears kept coming.

"Dumbledore." A voice sneers.

It was Tom. I knew that sneer by heart.

I don't make a retort. I think I was channelling Mr. Ollivander's pain. No wonder I felt like I couldn't breathe. I was taking his agony away from him. How? I had no clue.

"Dumbledore?" Tom asks, irritated.

He kneels down, crouching at the knees. He eyes me in utter disregard. "Did you injure your brain when you fell." He scoffs, gripping my elbows. I turn to look at him with a tear-stained face. His face changed instantly from angered to emotionless.

"Who hurt you?" He sneers, hauling me up to my feet.

I shake my head, rubbing my heart. "H-How do I turn it off?" I croak, and he tilts his head in curiosity until his eyes gleam, realizing what was wrong.

"You used Legilimency." He tsks, scoffing, and then half drags me to an abandoned hallway.

"Stop thinking about whoever you were stalking like the freak you are." He barks, eyeing me warily.

I shake my head. "That's hard, though. He's had horrible things happen to him." I cry. Tom scowls, letting out an angered groan.

"Think of that child you adore so much. Think of your friends." He sneers, lip curling upwards.

I shake my head, tears streaming down my face.

He slaps me.

Hard.

He needed to stop doing that.

"Shake out of it!" His voice thunders and I do what he says, shutting my eyes closed and thinking of Ariana and Abby. I think of Pan and Claude. I think of Chris and Aberforth.

I think of Tom.

I think of how our hands had been clasped all this time, and Tom didn't seem to care or mind it.

I think of the vision. That one happy vision that told me that Tom had a future he could look forward to.

My eyes flutter open, and I realize how he was almost hugging me.

My throat dries.

I purse my lips, my eyes widening as I realized something.

The boy engulfed in darkness, being sucked in by its lullaby.....had saved me from drowning.


	37. A Kidnapping Forseen

It was Saturday.

I was in an indigo hoodie, jeans and sneakers. I planned to be comfortable if I was going to save Greta's mom and brother, torturing all those assholes who'd hurt them.

Oh, dear lord.

I was adapting Abaddon's love for torture and bloodshed.

I was waiting for Tom. We were going to go to Aberforth's Inn and then walk out of there so we'd be kidnapped.

It was getting warmer, and you simply needed a hoodie or sweater to keep warm. In fact, I see Tom strolling down in a green sweater of his own.

Green.

It suited him. Colour. Wearing something that wasn't black

I cross my arms, tapping my foot in mock impatience. "You're late," I demand, and his eyes give me a once over, dismissing me entirely.

"I'm not late. You're simply early."

Rolling my eyes, I skip up and link my arm in his. We continue our descent out of Hogwarts.

"You've made Walburga become an utter nuisance to my existence." He scowls suddenly, and I look up at him with an amused grin.

"Really? How so?"

"She won't leave me the bloody hell alone. This is your fault. Fix it." He sneers, pulling me to the side, so some incoming students didn't pummel into me.

"Hmmmm, have you ever thought of actually telling the girl you aren't interested." I laugh, making him scoff.

"I shouldn't have to. Someone like me would never look twice at someone like her." He sneers the words, his dark eyes staring ahead.

"Wow. I can tell you're incredibly humble. It's such an amazing personality trait to have."

"I'm aware. I am perfection itself, Dumbledore." He literally flips my insult into a compliment. I shake my head in amusement.

"You've got to take your arrogance down a notch," I state, rolling my eyes at him. He turns to me, eyes proud, and a wide smirk adorning his lips. He gives my hand clutching his own two sharp taps with his opposite hand.

"That's all part of my charm, darling." He sneers the words, making me smirk back up at him.

"Funny... Wasn't aware charm was associated with being a prim peacock."

"Peacocks are the most stunning birds alive."

"They are also easy to kill."

Tom sends me a lethal look, making me grin.

"I'll do us the honours," I demand and twirl around, wrapping a hand around his mid-section. I apparate a second later.

We land in Aberforth's Inn, hidden in the corner.

"Do we leave now?" I whisper to him, and he purses his lips, making me send him a glare. "You want bloody hot chocolate, don't you."

He looks away to the side and then back at me.

"I don't not want hot chocolate."

"Bloody Hell Riddle."

We end up sitting down and spending an hour with Aberforth and Ariana all for Tom's hot chocolate.

Tom didn't even mind that Ariana was sitting beside him the whole time, looking at him like he meant the entire world to her.

He was too busy with his three cups of hot chocolate and with ignoring her.

Ariana almost cried when we told her we had to leave.

I promised her we'd visit tomorrow as well, in a whisper. Tom heard me and had sent me a lethal look.

"Don't you dare Riddle. That child adores you. Why? I don't know! But you better be nicer to her the next time we visit, or I swear to god I will curse you so bad, you won't be able to leave your room for days." I smack his shoulder once we leave the Inn.

"Of course she adores me. Everyone loves me, Dumbledore. And I think the curse you are referring to is called being in your presence." He sneers at me.

"Wow, how extremely prevalent of you." I scoff, and then I realize he'd gone silent. I notice a couple figures eyeing us.

"Tom." I hiss, eyes darting around, trying to see how many people there were.

"I know." He answers, moving closer to me. I do the same until we're walking side by side, shoulders brushing each other.

"Stay close. They'll probably rush us." He says, whispering in my ear. I nod, trying to focus on the fight Tom and I were just going to go through.

Spells erupt around us, and I'm suddenly thrown a couple feet to the side. I scream as chains and ropes entangle around me. I couldn't breathe.

I was being choked to death. The damn ropes were wound way too tight around my neck.

My head is pounding, every cell in my body is screaming for oxygen. My head is about to explode.

Wheezing, I saw black spots erupt in my mind. I grab at the ropes, engulfing them in black magic. The chains disintegrate at my touch, and I'm left a coughing mess. Tears fill my eyes. I find myself being hauled to my feet by Tom. He engulfs my chocking, sputtering mess of a self in a one-sided hug, holding me up.

"You alive?" He scowls, looking at the wizards that surrounded us in loathing hate. Tom had an air to him that made anyone who approached him instantly wary. When Tom got angry, his body language didn't change. He stayed still and cautious, staring at everyone with features contorted into such anger, they could give people nightmares.

"No... I'm freaking deceased Riddle." I scowl at him, bending down to try to get oxygen into my lungs.

"You two are coming with us." The man in the front snickers at us. All of the people in front of us had their wands pointed at us. Tom eyes me from the corner of his eye. He looks from the wand in my hair back to me, and my eyes widen before I touch my wand, instantly making it turn invisible, mumbling the spell under my breath.

Tom nods at me.

"Going where?" Tom demands, voice loud.

"Somewhere, we can get our money!!" A witch hisses, apparating beside me and grabbing me, pushing me away from Tom. She grabs one of my arms, throwing me to another man. Someone had rammed into Tom in the same manner.

"Ohhhh, this girl is a pretty one... Let's have some fun before we hand them over." The man holding my forearm coos.

My face pales.

"Don't touch her. They want them alive and untouched you disgusting man!" The witch who'd grabbed me sneers at the man in distaste.

Tom was seething. He looked ready to kill them all. Which I would have gladly helped him do if we weren't trying to get kidnapped on purpose.

Someone slapped me.

The momentum has my face whipping to the side. It stung severely like someone had decided to dump boiling oil on it.

"You asshole!" I shriek and kick him in the balls..... hard.

He wasn't expecting that.

"YOU dumb bitch!!!"

"I hope you NEVER have the chance to have kids. You don't deserve to be a dad, you self-loathing son of a bitch!!!" I snarl, being pulled back by two other men.

"Why I'll teach you a lesson, you little-" He starts to say but jumps back in shock when I suddenly get an adrenaline rush and rip out of the grasps of the two men.

"Come over here, so I CAN TEACH YOU ONE!!!"

The man actually screams in surprise.

It was most definitely one of those high pitched girly screams too.

Tom gives me a look that said, Seriously, Dumbledore. I give him a look back

Well, did you want him to freaking hit me?

I would've enjoyed seeing that actually.

Why you sick-

"Get A MOVE ON!! GRAB THE DAMN CHILD AND APPARATE!!!" The witch screeches at them. They finally listen, and they apparate us.

I open my eyes to see myself in some underground duelling arena. It had cages lined up and hanging around us. We were standing on some sort of boxing arena, and there were around hundreds of faces staring down at us.

"WE FOUND THEM!!" The witch screeches.

I look up, eying the cages.

The cages had people in them.

Sick people.

Injured people.

People who looked at the brink of death.

"Oh my god." I gasp, putting a hand to my mouth.

"The utter bastards!! How dare they!!? There are KIDS UP THERE!!! VALENTINE, did you see?!!!" Abaddon rages in my head.

The place was huge. It held prisoners all over, with wizards guarding them like they were mere cattle.

Tom and I are shoved together, and I wince, rubbing my shoulder. "I'm going to slaughter them all." Tom snarls, his eyes going black in his rage.

"We free the prisoners first," I state, making him sneer.

"Why?"

"Because they've been trapped for who knows how long, being tortured and abused." I hiss at him. "I'm pretty sure we both know what that feels like."

He's silent for a second.

"Fine. But the men that brought us here. I'm killing those assholes first."

"Fine, but we are only torturing them and," I smirk, staring back at him.

"Only if you share."


	38. A Blonde Tortured

We stand back to back, staring down at the wizards and witches staring at us.

"I WANT MY MONEY!!" The same woman who had kidnapped us screeches.

A woman steps forward, blonde hair willowing behind her. She gives us a smirk walking towards us, in freaking three-inch heels. The woman from my compass. My heart skips a beat. That was the woman my compass had shown me.

"So, you are the two brats who kidnapped my daughter."

We look at her industriously. I was gaping at the woman.

"You willingly allowed Grindelwald to knock you up?" Tom huffs out, unimpressed. He crosses his hands and raises a brow in her direction.

"You dare talk TO ME LIKE THAT YOU IMPRUDENT CHILD!!" She screeches, making me turn around.

"Don't be so flattered. He talks to everyone like that. You are no one special." I scoff at her.

"I am going to so enjoy torturing you two to insanity." She cackles, after giving us a hateful look.

"Your daughter is doing so much better without you anyway." I snarl, making Tom shoot me a look.

"Two thousand galleons as promised." The blonde woman smiles.

As a unit, all the people who'd kidnapped us rush forward to take the money.

I didn't expect them to all end up dead.

In synchronized fashion, wizards and witches standing on the floor above us shoot out the same spell, "AVADA KEDAVRA!!"

Tom and I find ourselves rushing backwards in surprise. An outraged look appears on my face as the blonde woman struts forwards, heels clicking on the floor. She wore a satisfied smirk on her lips, and I find myself wearing one of anger.

"Oops..." She giggles, swinging the bag filled to the brim with gold.

It was official.

I hated this bitch.

"I WAS SUPPOSED TO KILL THEM!!!" Tom rages, making me glare at him.

"Wow. Well done, Riddle. Very SUBTLE!!" I smack his shoulder. "AND I thought we agreed on torturing them!!" I demand in outrange.

"I agreed to nothing of the sort!!" Tom snarls and unsheathes his wand from his sleeve.

"I THOUGHT WE HAD A PLAN!!!" I shout, and then I see a spell coming towards me. I deflect it with a dismissing wave of my hand.

"Do you freaking mind!? We're having a crisis here!" I snarl at the blonde woman who was blinking at me in surprise. "Ouuuu!!!" I jump up and down in excitement. "Not so smug now are we," I grin at Ariana's birth mom.

"And that's extremely subtle." Tom drawls pointing to me and blondie.

"You had a plan. It was terrible. I changed it!" Tom snarls, making me curl my lip at him in disgust.

"Well, what's your plan!??" I hiss at him, making him shrug. He eyes the wizards around us in mirth.

"We fight our way out, Dumbledore. Honestly, woman." He gives me a look that said he was done with my dramatics.

"ENOUGH! I am calling Grindelwald. He will deal with you two!!" The woman snarls, moving to walk away.

Without moving, I keep her in place with a thought.

She looks back with a surprised look on her face.

"OH, honey!! You think you're getting out of this without a fight!! After what you've done to these people. I think not." I laugh out. My laugh was cold... hard... I thanked Tom for making me more intimidating by association.

Spells instantly are shot from above, but channelling Abaddon, I send them hurling back at the senders by pushing out my hands.

Screams.

Loud and terrifying.

My eyes were even more frightening.

Tom steps up to meet my side, and then the battle begins.

We're a force to be reckoned with. Wizards and Witches alike were being shot down quicker than flies.

We parried and moved like we have our moves choreographed.... not like we'd been screaming at each other two seconds before.

Every spell Tom sent out, I sent out one out too. Tom moved forward, and I moved back, defending his blind spots. Tom did the same to me.

The blondie was staring at us in shock, watching the whole thing.

I stare at her for a second, allowing Abaddon to come forward just for that split second.

I couldn't help but smirk when she lets out a scream of pure terror.

"Reducto!" I scream, allowing cage doors to explode above me. "On my mark, jump," I order Tom, and he only has to stare at my face to give me a curt nod.

"NOW!" I shout, waving my wand around above my head and then spinning to slam my wand down on the floor. Rows and rows of clawed chains burst out from my wand, erupting around me in circles. They followed after the wizard/witch until it had captured them wrapping itself around the poor person. The spikes pierced through skin, and I smirk, stepping back in satisfaction seeing the wizards who had hurt so many now feeling the same pain.

Those spikes held remnants of an exceedingly painful poison on them. Not lethal but excruciatingly painful.

Tom stares at my wand in awe. "Add that to the list of spells you're teaching me, Dumble." He points at me, and I step up to give his cheek a fond tap.

"Of course." I grin up at him and then we move our hands up at the same time, heads whirling around.

Our spells hit the man who'd dared try to attack us, in sync. He flies away with a shout of surprise. We whirl back to stare at each other, smirking.

I look up, and I see a boy staring at me. I would recognize those eyes and features anywhere. Greta's brother stared at Tom and I in barely concealed awe.

"Reducto!!" I scream, and the cage holding Greta's brother blasts open. He eyes me with respect. I give him a nod in return, before spinning around and sending a powerful spell at a wizard sneaking up on Tom.

The screams echo through the underground torture chamber.

Blondie was running away.

I scoff and send a spell at her, eyes blazing in anger. "Locomotor Mortis." I snarl.

Her legs are instantly locked together. She starts hopping around like a bunny rabbit.

I start laughing.

Whipping my hand up, I drag her along the floor. She screeches out profanities, making me giggle in glee. "Hey, bitch!! Get ready!! This spell is dedicated to you!!" I squeal in glee, bringing her up and hanging her up on the edge of one of the balconies by her hood.

"What are you going to do, you devil!?" She shrieks and then I look at Tom, who was grinning like a madman. It was getting creepy, actually.

"Stop that!" I hiss at him, and he gives me a look.

"Stop what?" He asks, making me give him a deadpanned look.

"That creepy arse smile."

"My smile is perfection."

"Unlike your arse."

"What?!"

"What?" I grin at him innocently, making him glare at me.

"Want to do the honours?" I ask him, shrugging.

The creepy grin comes again.

"I told you to stop that!!!" I smack him, making the grin drop from his features.

"Let me HAVE MY MOMENT!"

"NO!! YOU ARE FREAKING ME OUT!!"

Tom doesn't answer me next because every cage left overhead, explodes. The wizards and witches trapped, start to cheer. They were crying and leaping out.

Raising my wand, I look at Blondie when I say my next spell, "Accio."

At once, all the wands of the prisoners that had been kept in storage fly towards me. I direct them towards the wizards and witches behind me.

"I'll leave your punishment to the people you've hurt." I give her my own version of Tom's creepy grin.

"Stop that," Tom demands, gesturing to my evil grin

"WHY! You do it!" I snap.

"I excel the look.... you, however, look constipated."

"I do NOT!! Take that back!" I hit his arm,

The people behind me are more than happy to step up and deal her their very own punishments. Blondie's screams echoed through the arena. They were tormented, and I didn't think I'd ever forget them. It was a primal scream.... one someone would use when they were in anguish.

A guy walks up to us, and I look at him kindly. "Greta Ollivander's brother.... and her mother." I nod to the blonde, tired woman leaning on her son.

"You two saved us." He breaths in awe, and I smile.

"It was no trouble we-"

"I saved nobody. I tortured and killed." Tom barks, making me glare at him.

"I was watching you! You didn't kill anyone." I scoff, making him make his glare even more lethal. 

"Ignore him. He doesn't like to interact socially after he's been in a fight." I pat, Tom's shoulder, leaning my chin on it as I stood slightly behind him.

He doesn't move away.

"How do you know my sister?" Greta's brother asks.

"We saved her from being killed and raped three weeks ago." Tom drawls.

Greta's brother looked like he wanted to be sick.

I elbow Tom roughly.

"Yes, Greta's one of my best friends. I'm Valentine Dumbledore, and this is Tom Riddle. We are students at Hogwarts." I nod to the boy.

"So am I." He sighs and then I glance at Greta's mum.

She looked seconds from death. Greta's brother must've seen it too because he looks at us, tears in his eyes. "I don't know healing spells. Please help my mum. You guys looked invincible... Please." He begs us, and Tom looked ready to smack someone's head into a wall.

Not his, of course. That would ruin his perfect face.

"Wow, you even think like the boy now? Just marry him and be done with this drama." Abaddon scoffs from my head, making me internally glare at my demon.

"Dumbledore I swear if you even think of-"

I give him a look.

"I despise you. Did you know that?" Tom snarls at me.

"I'm aware." I roll my eyes and hold out my wand. "Place her on the ground. We'll try our best." I state, and Tom glares at me.

I enter his mind through Legilimency.

Come on!! We can try the Necromancy again!!! I was literally squealing.

"Get out of my head." Tom snarls, raising his wand at my neck.

"Well?" I ask, and his mouth turns up like he ate something sour.

"Fine."

His answer has me smiling.

We both raise our wands.

How exactly did we do Necromancy before?

"Dumbledore, I will wring your neck here and now!" Tom marches towards me, fulling intending to uphold his promise.

Ms. Ollivander starts choking up blood.


	39. Bloodied Clothes with Bloodied Hands

My wand is instantly up, and I cast the first healing spell I can think of. Apparently, Tom had the same thought and cast a spell as well.

Ms. Ollivander wasn't dead, so she didn't need a ton of our energy to heal.

"Together?" I ask, and Tom nods, eyes trained on the woman in front of him. I knew he was only doing it out of curiosity for his newly acquired abilities... I was sure he actually couldn't care less whether or not this woman died.

"Vulnera Sanentur." We demand, at the same time, circling around Ms. Ollivander in the same way we had with Greta.

Almost instantly, I felt some of my energy being used up to heal the wounds that the mere spell couldn't do on its own.

We only had to do the spell once before, Ms. Ollivander gasps awake. All of her cuts and bruises were healed.

She stares up at us like we were angels sent from the heavens above.

After everyone had left safely, Tom and I were the last ones left.

"Can we leave this dreadful place now? It smells dreadful."

"Huh. I'd have thought smelling the blood of your enemies would get you high." I pipe back at Tom Riddle, as we stroll around the Black Circle's headquarters.

"No. I'm not barbaric. I have class Dumbledore." He scoffs, making me groan.

"Yes... I've heard of your drastic perfection Riddle. Better watch your head....might explode with the ego you have." I tease him.

"Let's just apparate. This place is beneath me."

"You want hot chocolate again, don't you!?"

"I don't not want hot chocolate"

"TOM!"

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

We apparate back to the Inn.

Only....... To have Aberforth start screaming when he sees us.

"WHAT HAPPENED!!! GOOD LORDDD!!! YOU BOTH LOOK LIKE YOU SHREDDED PEOPLE UP!!!" He shrieks in horror, staring at our clothes riddled with blood.

He was waving his hand like a fan in front of him. He was wearing a pink apron too. I was trying not to burst out laughing at the view in front of me.

My eyes widen, and Tom purses his lips.

"Hi, cousin!! Love you too!!" I wave at him eagerly, but he glares at us.

"VALENTINE DUMBLEDORE! TOM RIDDLE!" He booms at the two of us, and I cringe. Even Tom blinks in surprise.

"You explain yourselves this INSTANT!!!" He shouts.

"Well, you see... Aha! The thing is... TOM, you explain!!" I shout, shoving him forward.

"Why the bloody hell would I do that!?" He snarls. "He's your cousin!"

"And he's your professor's brother!"

"He's yours too."

"Oh." I purse my lips. "I always do the explaining!! It's your turn." I demand, glaring at him.

"We had bounties on our head, and we decided to get kidnapped so we could torture-" Tom gives me a nasty look. "-the ones who dared think they could harm us."

"I adore how blunt you are," I say in a sickening sarcastic tone.

"Why, thank you."

"It was sarcasm, you idiot!"

Aberforth was staring in-between the two of us in actual horror. "I actually have no words. The Aberforth Dumbledore..... stunned speechless." Aberforth exclaims.

"You are technically still speaking." Tom points out, and at Aberforth's angry glare, he pipes up again. "Would this be a proper time for hot chocolate?"

"No!!" I demand. "This is not when you ask someone who could get you expelled for a favor!!" I hiss at him.

"Don't be ridiculous. You're his cousin. He won't intentionally hurt you."

"Family members are always the ones that hurt you." I snap back, making his eyes darken in agreement.

"I'm making hot chocolate." Aberforth sighs, giving up. "Go upstairs and shower, please... WITHOUT giving Ariana a heart attack!" He scowls at us. "And don't either of you two DARE apparate away." He snarls. "I will drag you both back here by your fingernails."

"Use my clothes and THROW YOURS OUT!!" Tom and I hear Aberforth shout as we make our way upstairs.

"BURN THEM!!! LEAVE NO TRACE!!"

We both paused to look at each other.

"Well, now I know that everything wrong with you is because of your Dumbledore genes." He sneers. That makes me laugh.

"Thanks."

The asshole technically told me I was freaking 100% perfect. I was taking it.

I finish my shower after had been waiting an hour for Tom to finish, and put on the vast hoodie and huge pyjama pants Aberforth had given me. These were comfy as hell. I don't think I would be returning them anytime soon.

"Incendio." I cast my old clothes on fire. I watch the flames until my clothes were nothing but piles of ash. Waving my hand, I dose it in water so the fire didn't spread to the entire house.

I rush downstairs to find Tom glaring at Ariana. She was bouncing up and down, excited to see him.

They had cups of hot chocolate in front of them. I move to sit on the couch across from Tom and lift my own cup to my lips. I almost get burned because that's when Ariana decided to jump on me.

"Whoa," I demand, laughing as I set my hot chocolate down and pulled her to sit on my lap. She wraps her tiny hands around my neck in a classic Ariana hug.

Aberforth walks towards us, glaring.

"How many times have I told you NOT TO LEAVE HOGWARTS UNSUPERVISED!" He shouts, making me chuckle.

"Um, once actually."

Aberforth smacks the upside of my head.

"Ow!!" I demand, but he scowls.

"Tom! Valentine! I am absolutely DISGUSTED!" He yells. "YOU COULD HAVE DIED!"

I cringe, looking away. "See, they would've tried to kidnap us anyways!! We just stopped it from happening in the future."

"Plus, I saved a couple hundred wizards that were being held in captivity," Riddle smirks. I whip around to glare at him, throwing one of the crackers from the table at him.

"We saved a couple hundred wizards. We. Plural!" I snap, making Tom scoff, and take another sip of his hot chocolate, ignoring me.

"You did?" Aberforth stares at us, and I nod.

"Yes, a couple of wizards and witches were kidnapped by them. The Ollivander family included. That's why I wanted to go to The Black Circle headquarters so badly. To get them out of there." I tell Aberforth whose angry face softens to a thoughtful one.

"I understand you two had the right intentions, but you could've seriously gotten yourself, or someone else hurt." My cousin demands.

"A lot of people did." Tom drawls.

I throw another cracker at him.

He catches the damn thing in his mouth.

Aberforth looked done with us and life.

"I'm informing Albus."

"No! Come on, cousin!! Don't tell Albus!! He won't do anything anyways! He'll just tell us some stupid quote and have us on our way!"

Ariana looking between us all, with an intrigued look on her face. "SHOULD I BE YELLING TOO!!" She screeches, and we all flinch, looking at her.

"No. No, my dear. We are arguing, that's why." Aberforth smiles at the child in my arms.

"Do you have anything to eat? I'm starving." I ask Aberforth, making him glare at me.

"Go to Hogwarts!" He snaps, still pouting. Ariana and I eye each other evilly for a second before we both jump at him.

"Please!!!! PLEASE!!" Ariana and I screech and start tickling Aberforth. The wooden chair he was in cracks, and we all end up on the floor.

We burst out laughing. I grin, whipping around to look at Tom.

He was eyeing us with a soft look in his eyes. It disappears the second he sees me staring at him and scowls. I laugh, rushing up to jump up on Tom's lap.

"Get off me, Dumbledore!" Tom seethes, trying to push me off, but I wrap my arms around his neck, giggling like crazy.

"NOPE! Help us convince Aberforth to get us food!" I shriek, and Tom stands up, lifting me up in his arms only to drop me onto the floor. I shriek laughing. I would've fallen had I not been holding on to him.

"Nope. It's late. Head back to school. Actually, wait- I'll accompany you two." Aberforth declares. I give him a look.

"And leave Ariana alone? I think not. We can take care of ourselves, Aberforth. I promise."

Aberforth looked like he wanted to argue but instead nods, engulfing Tom and me into a hug. "Careful, you two. Any trouble, please let me know." He says, and I nod for us because Tom looked ready to bolt out of there.

We apparate away a second later.


	40. Visiting the Snake

The second I enter the castle, I'm rushing towards the Infirmary.

"Mr. Ollivander!!" I shriek and grab onto the man, waking him up. "Mr. Ollivander! Mr. Ollivander!" I demand.

The man wakes up with a start.

"Ms. Dumbledore?" He asks, and I grin.

"Mrs. Ollivander and your son are home!" I exclaim. The man pales.

"What?" He breathes, making me nod frantically.

"Go!" I clap my hands. He looks at me for a second, before he starts racing to Dippet's office. I follow him, just as excited as he was so he could see his family.

He races up into Dippet's office and then sends me a grin when he sees that I had followed him curiously.

"The Ollivander mansion!" The man states and slams down a bunch of Floo powder before going up in green smoke.

I wait for a second and stare at the floo network in contemplation. I touch the edge of the fireplace, still smiling slightly. My smile dims the second a vision hits.

Mr. Ollivander stands in his house, the green flames dimming around him. There, his wife stood on the floor, whimpering in fear as an older version of Abraxas Malfoy stands over her. His son was lying on the floor, wincing in pain. Deep, blood slashes stood on his chest.

"Unhand my family!!" Mr.Ollivander yells, his wand raising up.

"Not until you give Grindelwald the information he needs." A woman cackles in the corner.

"Never." Ollivander hisses.

"TELL US WHERE IT IS!!! WHERE ARE THE DEATHLY HALLOWS!!"

I gasp, hearing the woman's screams echo in my ears.

"Are you sure that's what's going to happen? It could be in a couple of years?" Abaddon asks hopefully, and I sigh.

"I know! I'm tired of torturing people too."

"Ha!! ME!!? Tired of torturing people? NEVER!!! I'm just done with stupid arse Grindelwald at this point." Abaddon scoffs, making me smile

I grab a handful of floo powder and purse my lips, stepping into the fireplace.

"Why do we always stick our nose into other people's business." Abaddon sighs and I groan.

"Like hell, if I know," I mutter. "The Ollivander Mansion!" I snap and throw down the powder, engulfing myself in green flames.

I step out of the fireplace only to smirk.

Everyone was staring at me... Mr and Mrs.Ollivander were staring at me in horror and surprise, and the Malfoy couple was glaring at me.

"WHO ARE YOU!?" The man snarls, making me grin at him. His similarity to his son makes me instantly hate him by association.

I know I'm an awful human being.

Screw it. I don't really care.

"Your worst fucking nightmare!" I snarl, answering him, and sending him flying backwards with a wave of my hand.

He slams into the balcony doors, rolling into the curtains.

"Why you little-" The wife threatens and waves her wand sending a spell hurling at me.

Instantly Abaddon comes to view, and our evil grin has her screaming in fear. We dodge the spell easily before throwing her telekinetically across the room.

"I DID NOT physically move from my couch to save their asses ONLY TO HAVE YOU TWO IDIOTS come and terrorize them again!!" I scream so loudly, my throat started to hurt, but oooooooohh I was pissed off.

"Grindelwald w-will c-come!" The wife coughs, her dark eyes wild with a threat.

"I'm sorry? I didn't catch that! Want to REPEAT IT!!" I giggle wildly, clenching my hand into a fist and stopping oxygen from entering her lungs.

She turns blue.

"That's SUCH a good colour on YOU!!" I squeal, jumping up and down like a child.

"LET MY WIFE GO!!" Malfoy screeches like a banshee. "MARISSA!! NO!!" He runs up to grab the half-dead woman on the floor. Malfoy turns on me, a lethal look in his eyes and his eyes raised.

"Oops!" I laugh, breaking his wand in half, with a snap of my fingers.

I release my hold on Marissa only to raise my hand in front of me and slam it up into the air. The two of them hit the ceiling hard.

I bring my hand back down, and they hit the floor even harder.

I keep doing that over and over again until I walk over to Ms. Ollivander, who was holding her son up in tears. She stares at me in utter horror. I was still channelling Abaddon, so it's no wonder the woman fainted.

I smile and wave my other hand over the two of them, sending healing spells in their direction. They wake up with gasps. They were barely injured anyways.

I drop the Malfoy's, turning to look at them with a disgusted look.

"Why can't we kill them?" Abaddon asks.

"Because we are above killing," I answer.

"But we've killed before!!" He whines.

"In self DEFENSE!!"

I walk outside the Ollivander's house, dragging them outside with me. I sigh, staring at them in pity. "You made it too easy." I snicker, throwing them to the sidewalk.

Lifting my hands, I engulf the house in a force field of dark magic.

"Guess who can never enter this house again?" I sneer. "You guys and everyone else in the world."

The Ollivanders walk outside. I step into the force field, Abaddon instantly vanishing from view.

"No one can enter your house without your permission," I inform them and point to the force field. "It should protect against spells and attacks as well," I tell them, with a smile.

They were staring at me in stunned silence.

"Um. So I'll just be going now." I grin, moving to walk back inside their house. "I'm going to use your floo network," I say slowly.

That shakes Mrs. Ollivander out of her stupor. She rushes over and engulfs me in a hug.

"Thank you." She was crying.

"Anytime." I smile, patting her back awkwardly. Greta's brother moves forward, sensing my discomfort.

"No one can come here now? No one can threaten us?" He asks, pulling his mother away from me. His grey eyes, so similar to Greta's, were staring at me hopefully.

I nod and step up beside Mr. Ollivander. "No one can enter your home without your consent," I repeat again. "I can, of course, because it's my magic. I command it. But anyone else.... no." I smile, warmly at them.

"How can we repay you?" The mom cries and I grin, looking at Mr. Ollivander.

"Call off the damn wedding, please!" I demand, and he laughs, moving to hug me.

"That was already a done deal the moment you threw the Malfoys across the room like mere dolls." He grins, eyes glistening in happiness, as his arms wrap around me in a hug.

Instantly a vision floods my mind.

It was Ollivander. He was much older here. He looked like the Ollivander, who had given me my wand. He was staring down someone. His wand was in pieces beside him. I look up to see who he was staring at and flinch back in horror.

It was Voldemort.

Voldemort was looking at Ollivander with a predator like expression. He knew he had the man cornered. Voldemort was smug. His snake was slithering around. It almost touches my feet, and I'm lurching back with a yelp of fear.

"Where's the Elder Wand, old man?" Voldemort croons. His voice was deep and raspy like he been smoking too many cigars.

"I didn't give Grindelwald the wand when he threatened me. What makes you think I'd ever give it to you." Ollivander muses, acting calm.

Damn, this man was unbreakable.

I just found my new freaking role model.

"I'M SUPPOSED TO BE YOUR ROLE MODEL VAL!!" Abaddon shrieks in my head.

"Not now, Abaddon!!" I hiss back at him.

"Bravery." Voldemort scoffs and begins to walk around him, circling him like a panther. "How foolish." Snake man continues.

His bald head and the fact that he had no nose was really throwing me off. I was struggling to keep staring at him. It was creepy.

Voldemort finishes circling Ollivander and gives an evil smirk.

"If chivalry won't work, I'll try something else...... Crucio!"

Ollivander hits the floor screaming in agony.

I couldn't do anything but watch Greta's dad be tortured again and again and again. Tears whelm in my eyes, and I look up to stare at the face of an utter monster. He was cackling in glee at hurting an innocent man.

Voldemort's head suddenly whirls around, and he meets my eyes.

I think I had a heart attack.

Red eyes clash with my blue ones, and I stand there, petrified in terror. He could see me. What the hell!? How could he see me!!???

"Valentineeeeee." He croons. I glare at him. This thing would not scare me. I refused to be manipulated by a man with no nose.

Nagini hisses something to Voldemort, and I understand exactly what she said.

"I rememberrrrrrr herrrrrrrr." She hisses, and her undeniable connection to Voldemort enables her to see me as well.

I stumble back, staring at him in horror. "Tom, stop it." I snap at him.

The man falters slightly when I say his name. "You left. YOU MADE ME LIKE THIS!" He screams, and my eyes widen.

"I didn't do anything!"

"EXACTLY!" He roars.

Ollivander was writhing and gasping in pain on the ground. My eyes flicker in-between him and Voldemort.

"Let him go. He doesn't know where it is, Tom." I seethe. He glances up at me, and Ollivander's screams are instantly sated.

"So, you know where it is?" He grins such an evil grin; shivers run up my spine.

"No. Even if I did, I'd never tell you."

His expression clouds into one of anger.

"I know where they are." He hisses in anger. "I can go kill them.... your niece and nephew right this instant." He snarls, making me raise a brow. "I'll go murder you." He hisses continuing.

I'm the one that circles him this time.

"You do that... you mess up the sequence of events. My nephew and niece destroyed your power that night. If you could kill them, you'd have done it already, you weak bastard."

"Time is a fickle thing here, though. You kill me, and perhaps you don't become the Dark Lord, perhaps you die before graduating school." I snap at him. "Lord only knows how many times I probably saved your life, you low life scum."

"Saved MY LIFE!?" He roars and points his wand at me, eyes blazing.

"I'll kill you right now. I'll enjoy seeing the light dim from your eyes, just like you dimmed the light in me."

"I'm not really here, though... Am I?" I smirk at him, and the evil bloodlust in his eyes dims for a second.

"You aren't really here." He repeats slowly. "You're a projection. Looking into the future are we Dumbledore." He snarls, eyes blazing again, and I nod.

"I don't know what happened. Why are you always keen on being a blood-shedding killer?" I ask in a hush, staring at him.

"Valentineeeeeeeeeeee." Nagini hisses suddenly, and we both look down at the snake who was staring at me expectantly.

"She wants you to pet her."

I look up with wide eyes. "Pardon me?" I demand.

Voldemort sighs, looking god awful tired. "Nagini remembers you, Dumbledore. Just pet her." He snarls, and his words have me instantly crouching down to touch the snake.

Nagini slithers up to me, wearing a freaking smile. She wraps around me in a hug, and I pet her head delicately. She makes a literal cooing sound.

"I know her?" I ask silently.

"Yes." He answers, curt.

"I'm dead, aren't I? In this timeline?" I ask, still petting Nagini.

Voldemort walks over to Ollivander, eyeing the man in pity and disgust. "Tom!" I snap, making Voldemort whip around to glare at me. His red eyes looked at mine in anger. He was fucking terrifying.

"You're dead." He snarls.

My eyes widen in realization, and my grandma's words flood my mind.

If you continue this path, all I see is darkness. You'll die Val... you'll die.

"How!?" I look at him.

"You were my one weakness." He answers. "You were killed by your own family." He snarls, making me stand up, still holding Nagini, as I place her gently on the floor.

"Who?" I demand, and Voldemort shakes his head, wearing an evil grin.

"Find out yourself, Evans." And he lets out a laugh moving forward and scratching my face with his claw-like nails. His laugh was one so cruel I flinch back, stunned. My hand goes to my cheek in surprise.

I'm sucked out of the vision like someone was pulling me out.

I was standing in the Ollivander's house, frozen in place. Ollivander releases me from his hug and smiles at me. "Are you alright, Valentine? You've gone god awfully pale." Mrs. Ollivander asks. I stumble back, forcing a smile on my lips.

"Yes. Yes. I-I'm fine." I croak out.

"You're bleeding, Valentine." Greta's brother points out.

"Gideon, what do you mean she's bleeding? She was fine a second-" Mr. Ollivander is stunned into silence when he glances at my face.

My hand slowly goes up to my face, and my heart stops. Removing my hand, I bring it into my field of vision.

My fingers were painted red.


	41. Mentally Broken

I stumble into Dippet's office. I was still stunned.

"What was THAT!!" Abaddon shrieks and I flinch, waking up from my silent stupor.

"I-I don't know." I breathe, and sit down, trying to calm down. "He talked to me?!" I gasp and cover my head with my hands. "Abaddon?" I ask, and I hear him sigh in my head.

"I don't know. I honestly don't know, Val." He cringes.

"I'm bleeding. He hurt me!? I wasn't even there!" I shriek, my breathing becoming heavier and quicker.

"I'm sorry, Valentine," Abaddon whispers. "I know that wasn't what you wanted to see. You were dead young one."

"Valentine?" I hear someone ask, and I look up, still trying to breathe properly. My vision was distorted.

Someone rushes up and grabs me in a hug. "Val? My goodness! What happened, dear!?" Pan demands and I hug her back.

She reminded me of Luna. She reminded me of home.

"You're bleeding!" She gasps.

"Valentine! Tell me what happened?! Did someone hurt you?!" She demands and I nod, resting my head in her lap as she sat beside me.

"Who hurt you? I'll kill him!" She scowls, and I laugh, tears blurring in my vision. I burst out laughing so loud, my laughs begin to be contorted into sobs. I was laughing and crying at the same time.

I was having a mental break down, and I'm pretty sure Pan knew that. She holds me closer to her, hugging me tightly.

"Shhh. It's okay. I'm here now. No one is here. Just me. Pandora. You're friend, Pan." She whispers and starts playing with my hair, letting it out of its tight ponytail. "Shhhh." She starts humming a song.

The song has my heart clenching even more, and I sob even more. It was the song Luna hummed all the time. She hummed it in the same sing-song voice as her great-great-grand-daughter. I listened to it, feeling more homesick than ever before.

She stops humming, making me sit up and stare at her. Her pale eyes meet mine gently. "Who hurt you, Val?" She asks, making me shake my head, wiping my tears. I was so stressed. My emotions were overflowing, but the crying session had helped more than I liked to admit.

Breathing in, I release a shaky breath and bring my knees up, hugging them before I answered her.

"I didn't recognize him."

No, I did not recognize that man. That man was a stranger. He answered to his true name, but that wasn't Tom Riddle. That was the man who killed my parents.

That was the man who killed my sister and her husband.

He left four kids as orphans that day.

Ettie and Harry.... the twins who lived, were barely living.

Petunia, the one who raised the twins projecting her own resentment and sorrow on the pair.

And myself.

I survived that day. Somehow, I survived.

I lived and continued living every day with a desperate need to stop.

No, that man was unrecognizable to me. The man who had whispered my name like a melody on his snake-like lips... like a dehydrated man seeing water for the first time.

That was no man.

That was a monster.

I touch my cheek gently, and I shake my head, looking up at Pan. "I didn't recognize him," I confirm, making her eyes soften even more.

"Come on. Let's get you cleaned up." She says and helps me up.

"Why are you awake?" I ask her. She smiles in response.

"I had some things to do. Dippet wanted them done by tomorrow." She sighs, and I notice the exhausted look on her face.

"Let's get my cut healed, and I'll help you." I grin at her. She whirls around to stare at me, eyes wide.

"No, Valentine! You're traumatized." She gapes, and I scoff.

"No, I'm not. I'm shaken. I've been through worse, believe me." I say softly then, I beam at her. My smile was cracking, and I'm sure she saw the sorrow buried within its depths because she nods slowly.

"Okay, if you insist." She asks, tentatively.

"I do."

She links her arm through mine and gives me a meaningful look. "Val, you don't only have to depend on yourself anymore."

I give her a questioning look, but she shakes her head.

"You have me to lean on. You have Abigail. You have Claude and Chris..... Greta when she wakes up." She adds softly. "We're a team. Us five have always been friends since first year, but we've grown closer this year. You're one of us now. You're family, and we take care of our own." Pan declares, silencing my rant.

"I'm always here if you ever need to talk." She adds, making me smile at her.

"You're the best, Pan. You know that?" I ask, grinning, and she gives me a look.

"Of course I do. I'm spectacular." She scoffs, making me laugh.

"You'd get along with Riddle fabulously."

"You still didn't tell me how you two grew to know each other?!" She demands, and I chuckle.

"We grew close over the Christmas holidays. Ironic isn't is. The two orphans being friends." I muse, making her shrug. The fact that we are both orphans was gossip known throughout the whole school.

"Not really. Friends are made when they bond over something in common." Pan muses. "For us, it was our need for friendship that made our group become close friends. You are an intellect very much like myself, so we became close easily. You share the same sense of humour as Chris and Claude. You are exceedingly kind, making you easy friends with Abigail and Greta." She tells me, and then I chuckle, shaking my head.

"Greta bless her heart would be friends with anyone," I say, making her nod in agreement.

"Authentic truth to those words." Pan agrees.

"You and Riddle bonded over something you both share as well." She continues. I look at her, eyebrow raised.

"Our growing habit of annoying each other." I scoff, making her laughs.

"No, although that is very entertaining to watch." She gives me a look, and I shrug.

"You bonded over pain."

I grow silent.

"Building a base over something so unstable is dangerous," I tell her.

"Building a base in water is possible. Nothing is more unstable than water. It's not even a solid."

"We don't build architecture directly in the water, we build it in the sand under it." I grow confused.

"Exactly."

"Exactly what?"

"You bonded over the pain in the beginning and then bonded over other things as time moved on."

I look at her bewilderment, my jaw dropping. She laughs at my expression. "I know. I'm amazing." She grins, making me nod slowly.

"Hell yeah, you are." I smile as she leads me into the Infirmary.

Abby was on Greta watch tonight. She was asleep on the chair beside Greta's bed.

I smile at the sight, and we continue deeper in the Infirmary. We wake up Madame Strout, and she stops the bleeding from my cheek with a wave of her wand. There had been poison in the cut, preventing it from healing.

The words make my blood freeze.

What kind of sick person dipped his nails in poison?

Voldemort. Voldemort was that sick, tormented person.

"Who gave you this cut, girl?" Madame Stout asks me, and I tell her the same thing I told Pan.

"I didn't recognize the man that did it."

She lets us leave after placing gauze on my cheek, with a healing potion dabbed on it. We walk into the Infirmary, and I try to grab Pan to lead her out of the room, but she was frozen in place.

"Pan?" I ask and move to stand in front of her. "Pan, are you alright?" I ask.

Her jaw had dropped open, and she was staring at something behind me. She points, and I whirl around to see what has stunned her so much.

I let out a shriek of pure surprise, jumping back into Pan.

"You see her, too, right?" I ask, and she nods, tears brimming in her eyes. I sniffle, and tears come to my own eyes.

There was Greta, sitting up, and staring at us with her usual calming, bright smile. I didn't realize how much I missed that smile until I'd gone weeks without it.

"G-Greta?" Pan asks, and Greta grins, nodding, her own eyes brimming with tears.

Pan lets out a happy cry of joy and leaps at her childhood friend, engulfing her in a hug. She was sobbing, and I had to put a hand to mouth to keep from crying myself. I move and grab Greta's hand, holding it tightly, as if she might disappear in a second. I engulf her in a hug of my own. Pan never let go of her once.

"You're a-awake!!" Pan cries, sniffling and sobbing into Greta's hospital robe.

"I'm awake Panny." Greta says in her usual musical voice.

"W-what's going on?" Abby slurs in her sleep, yawning.

"Hi, Abby." Greta greets her friend, turning to give my hand a humorous squeeze.

"Hi, Greta," Abby answers, yawning as she rubbed at her eyes, exhausted. her words register in her brain, and she freezes, eyes slamming open. "OH MY GOD GRETA!!" She screams and leaps on all three of us.

She starts crying too.

"D-don't DO THAT ANYMORE!!" She screams. "I saw you die." Abby wails, grabbing Greta in a hug so ferocious I was scared for her ribs.

"You alright?" I say in-between my crying. "Any pain?" I ask and instantly, as if my words were a nuclear bomb, the two girls leap off of Greta.

"GRETA!! Are you in pain!!??" Pan shrieks and my hospitalized friend bursts out laughing.

"I'm fine, guys. Honestly." She beams at us, and Abby shakes her head frantically.

"I'm getting Madame Strout." She demands.

"No need."

Madame Strout chides us and gives all of us withering glares. "You woke up the entire country with your screaming. Honestly, girls." She demands and then gives Greta a soft look.

"Welcome back, Ms. Ollivander." She tells her and Greta smiles back.

"Happy to be back madame."

Madame Strout proceeds to check all of Greta's vials and then looks at all of our impatient, waiting looks in amusement. "Your friend is fine. She needs a good night's sleep and then she'll be alright to go back to school tomorrow. I'm going to send a letter to the Ollivanders." She informs us.

"My parents were here?" Greta asks, sitting up and looking desperate. "Both of them?"

Her eyes were hopeful, and I send her smile, answering her before Madame Strout could. "Yeah, Greta. Both of your parents were here." I answer, making her whole face light up.

"My brother too?" She asks, almost in tears.

"Your brother, too," I answer again.

Her whole body relaxes, and she looked so relieved she might've started crying, had it not been for her audience.

"Are they safe?" She demands, grabbing my hand. She knew from the look in my eyes that I knew more than I should've.

I give her hand a reassuring squeeze and look her dead in the eyes. Her grey eyes both cloudy storms clear into soft, transparent grey skies with shimmering suns in them at my next words.

"They're safe."


	42. Sucked Into a Vortex of Past Tears

Warning: Dark themes in this chapter.

"You did WHAT?!"

I flinch at the surprise in my grandmother's tone. She was pacing. Back and Forth. Back and Forth. It was making me dizzy.

"He talked to you? Voldemort?" She demands and I nod slowly, silent as I watched the gears in her head work overtime. She sat down and looked ready to faint. Her face was pale, and she had started to fan herself.

"Grandma?" I question in concern. She brings a finger to her mouth, heavy in thought. She straightens up and then points at me with her index finger

"You can use necromancy?" She scoffs suddenly and starts muttering profanities under her breath.

"Nana? What's going on? Why are you so angry?"

Her eyes lock on mine, and she sees the extreme fear I was feeling. Her blue eyes soften. "You travelled through time, my sweet. You didn't see a vision."

My jaw drops, astounded. "Excuse me!?" I squeak, and she looks grim, nodding her head. "But I saw a vision! I know it! It was exactly like all the other times!" I argue, shaking my head, trying to find a practical reason in my head.

"It started out as a vision, yes, but it hurled you through time. That's why Voldemort was able to physically hurt you. You were there. You were standing right beside him."

Fear engulfs me in its choking grip. I shake my head desperately. "Grandma. Stop it!! That's not true. I did not meet the man who killed my parents." I gasp, staring up at her with wide eyes.

I touch my cheek. It still hadn't healed. It started to bleed again at night and continued till the early morning hours. "He talked to me. He told me I'd died." I stand up, running a hand through my hair, my wand behind my ear for safekeeping.

Grandma just stares at me in pity. "There has only been one other person who could do what you can, child." She tells me, and I look at her knowingly.

"It was you wasn't it?"

She nods and stares at me for a second before turning away and swearing under her breath.

"Necromancy." She breathes, making me look up at her.

"I can bring people back from the dead grandma. That's not normal." I sneer at myself. Helga Hufflepuff tsks under her breath and then looks at me.

"I can help you control the visions, but I'm clueless about bringing people back from the dead." I give her a deadpanned look.

"Isn't everyone!?"

She shrugs and decides to refill our teacups with sizzling tea. She waves her wand, and the cup floats towards me. I pluck it from the air and sigh. "Most people don't know anything about Necromancy. That's the worst magic one can use. You can't get darker magic than Necromancy." She mutters, taking a sip from her cup.

I copy her, and the warm tea soothes the inner torment of raging emotions in my head. My trembling hands steady, and I can breathe easily. She'd put something in my tea. The sneak. "Seriously, grandma!?" I demand, making a smirk pull up at the corner of her lips. She gives a hearty laugh in response.

It causes a smile to be drawn on my face.

"Only you can find out the full range of your powers, Val. Don't be expecting me to give you all the answers now. Where's the fun in that?" She gives me a wink, making me scowl.

"Oh, yes. Because finding out everything, I can about Necromancy is so high up on my damn to-do list. Let's just put that after -oh, I don't know- saving the damn world." I demand, and my grandma snorts.

"Don't act like a whiny brat. This task was given to you, and you agreed. You dug your own grave, Valentine. Stop acting like it's everyone else's fault when it's yours." She scolds me. I raise an eyebrow at her.

"Yeah, it was my fault you're right. It was my fault I grew up without a family. It was my fault I was abandoned as a baby. My fault for wanting my family back and being manipulated by Dumbledore. Thank you so much for being the comfort I needed in my dark world, grandmother." I scowl, making her eyes narrow.

Shit.

I barely dodge a shoe thrown at my head.

"You NEED to stop doing that!!!" I screech, and she throws her other shoe at me.

"OW!" I shriek, rubbing my head where the shoe had hit.

"Don't take that tone with me, young lady." She orders and scowls at me. "Where did you hide that goblet of mine? Somewhere Voldemort won't find it I'm hoping?" She demands and I nod my head, still pouting.

"It's hidden and safe."

It was stuck inside one of the trees in the Forbidden Forest, using my spell of moving through inanimate objects.

No one would ever find it unless they cut the damn tree down and opened it up, but by then, I would've saved the world or died. Either way, the goblet would be useless by then.

"Good. Now give me your hand, young one. I want you to do a reading."

I blink in surprise.

"Grandma no offence or anything....but you know you're dead, right?" I say tentatively, and she gives me a no really dumbarse look.

"You'll be trying to see the past, you stupid girl." She rolls her eyes fondly and then moves to sit beside me, her brown robes dangling behind her like nobility.

She grabs my hand and gives me a look. "Concentrate. Try not to travel in time. That wouldn't go well." She orders and I close my eyes, trying to focus on the Seer in me.

I open my eyes and give my grandma an annoyed look. "I don't see anything!"

"Focus!" She smacks the upside of my face.

"Why am I always being abused when I visit you!?" I mutter under my breath. "I won't stand for it. I respect myself too much."

"If you respected yourself, you wouldn't be crushing on a boy who'd rather poison his nails them be with you."

"WHAT!?" I shriek, eyes flipping open.

"I DO NOT-"

"Shut up, Valentine. Yes, you do. I'm a Seer. Don't lie to your grandmother."

"Your Seer abilities are getting rusty."

Grandma gasps in offence. "No, they are not!"

"Oh, yes, they are!"

"Just focus on seeing a vision!"

"Fine!"

"Finally. My lord, you talk too much."

"HEY!"

Grandma smacks my head again. "Valentine I swear I will-"

I'm sucked into a vision.

It was me.

I was standing outside of grandma Helga's portrait, and I was staring at it.

I remembered this. This was the first time I'd met her. A smile spreads on my face as I watch eleven-year-old Valentine share the details of her day with a fascinated Helga.

Helga knew precisely who I was the second she saw me. She'd kept me in the dark for a couple of months, letting me get adjusted to the school before she dropped the life-changing bomb.

She'd told Ettie and Harry she was also their grandmother the same day.

"Val sweetie. I need to tell you something." Helga had told me. I see little me's reaction. My eyes had widened, and I rushed to get closer.

"Yeah!?" I'd asked in glee.

"You're name is Valentine Evans."

I watch as younger me tilts her head in confusion. "Yeah, of course. You already knew that, though." Valentine tried to laugh it off.

"The Evans are my descendants."

The bomb was dropped, and I feel a grin spread on my face as I rewatch the look of confusion convert instantly to shock as I realized what she was saying.

"You're family?" Little Valentine croaks out, eyes welling up in tears. "I-I have more family?" She sobs. My smile turns soft, and my heart squeezes. I feel a searing heat in my chest, and I rub the spot unconsciously, trying to dull the ache I felt there.

"Yes. I'm your grandmother Valentine." Helga laughs. "Well... great-great-great something, grandmother."

Valentine was staring at Helga in shock.

The shock wears off slowly, and she's left staring at her grandmother with teary eyes and smiling lips. She looks up and moves up to touch the portrait of Helga Hufflepuff. Helga reaches out and touches the spot where my hand was.

"Hi, Grandmama."

I'm instantly thrown into another vision.

It was another vision of me.

I feel my lips tugging down in a frown.

My heart literally stops in place.

I was watching from my grandmother's perspective. She was staring in from a portrait in the top corner of my room.

The room I'd lived in during my time at the orphanage.

The room where my whole life had been a torment chamber.

She'd seen it all.

She'd seen my pain.

She'd heard my screams.

I didn't want to relive this.

"NO STOP! I DON'T WANT TO SEE THIS!!" I scream at myself. Begging some other force to pull me out of this vision. I knew exactly what was going to happen here.

I had the scars to prove it.

This was where the darkness started.

I stare in silent horror, eyes hardening as a six-year-old Valentine walks in her room. Her hair was lifeless. Her blue eyes were dull. They were the light blue of stones instead of the shade of bluejays.

She was in her usual orphanage uniform. Yellow tie, grey skirt and grey dress shirt. Her tights were itchy. I knew this. They itched to the point where'd she'd scratch them raw and red.

I watch as the little me sits on her small bed.

She stared outside in misery. Her hands were shaking in fear. They always did that....trembled.

A girl with blonde hair races in. "He's here hide!" She whispers, eyes wild and scared. Valentine moves with practiced speed. She climbs to the top of her closet and huddles in the corner, hidden by the shadows.

She watches the girl, Raine, her name was, as she dashes to hide under her bed.

I amble around the room to stare at the little kids that shook in absolute dread. Tears sting my eyes. I didn't want to watch what happened next. I knew it all already. I had nightmares about this day.

A slam is heard. So loud, the whole house seems to quake with the power of the hit.

The two girls in front of me flinch.

I don't.

I knew exactly who had slammed that door.

I would never flinch in this awful place again.

I knew who'd enter the door in the next minute.

The door to the room blasts off its hinges. The man had kicked it open.

Valentine shakes even harder. I watch the younger version of myself cover her mouth, stifling her silent tears. I remembered how that felt like. I 'd been holding my breath.

I was holding my breath right now.

Raine was sobbing quietly. She was covering her eyes. Shielding her eyes from the world, she didn't want to be in. No innocence shone in neither one of their eyes.

No innocence shone in their eyes because there was none to be found.

It'd been stolen.

It'd been robbed.

It'd been taken by force.

The eyes I meet when my head lifts up finally were eyes I had memorized. They had been a source of terror for me. They still were.

Green eyes. Green eyes like a panther's glared all around, searching.

I swallow hard, watching as the blonde man grabbed Raine's ankle from the bottom of the bed. He rips her out from under it and throws her into the wall.

"You hide?! YOU HIDE!?" He roars, making my jaw clench. I wipe away the stray tears that had fallen without my consent.

Raine was screaming.

She was crying.

He slaps her so hard, she falls to the floor in a heap.

"SHUT UP!" He roars. My hands clench in anger.

"I can't do this," I whisper. "I can't do this." Tears were blurring my vision as I watched my friend continue to be beaten to the floor again and again.

I look up at the top of the closet and shake my head.

"Stay hidden. Please. Don't be brave." I whisper in horror and watch as past me wears a look of determination.

I knew exactly what she was thinking.

The words were engraved in my brain.

'If I die here, at least I won't die a coward. I'm halfway to death anyway. What's the point?'

I fall to my knees in tears, witnessing the moment Valentine Evans broke.

She jumps on the man's back.

She flew.

She flew like a bird.

Only the bird had a broken wing.

She grabs the man's neck, distracting him from the bleeding girl in the corner. She's thrown into the wall the same way that Raine had seconds before her. It was like watching a child throw around a doll... only the doll was a real person.

"Valentineeeeee." The man coos and I start to cry; both present me and past me.

We cry together.

We both cry for the pain we know we are going to be in.

I watch my undoing.

I watch it in silence.

My eyes never leave my form.

I watch every hit.

I watch every kick.

I hear every scream.

Every bruise she gets, I'm crying for. Every whipping lash she endures, I feel it myself. The scars on my back pulse in fiery heat. They pulsed with the reminder that they were still there.

I couldn't breathe. I was leaning on the bed, slumped on the floor.

"Stop. Please. Make it stop!!" I scream, covering my ears. I heard my screams ringing in my ears. Green eyes glared at me behind my closed eyelids.

"I DON'T WANT TO SEE ANY MORE!!!"

My voice is coarse. My hand goes up to my throat. I was shaking, trying to scramble away from the blood on the floor. My blood.

I watch what happens next. Only I don't watch Raine. I watch Valentine. I watch a little six-year-old me. I see the light leave her eyes, and the dead emotionlessness enters her conscious state of mind.

Her clenched fists instantly weaken, and she stares on. No emotion. None. Nothing showed on her face. I see the last tear she ever shed during her time at the orphanage fall down from her eye, splattering to the hardwood floor.

And I watch her witness the death of her best friend.

The snap was as loud as I remember.

We both scream at the same time.

I don't look at Raine. I can't

I know she's dead.

Her neck mangled in places unfixable to any doctor.

I know I'll see two lifeless brown eyes staring back at me. So I don't look.

I just keep sobbing and screaming. I couldn't breathe. Why wasn't oxygen entering my lungs?! Why couldn't I move?

I was frozen in shock, staring at my own destroyed body, knowing my best friend's body lay dead behind me.

"LET ME OUT OF HERE!" I cry. "I SAW IT! ARE YOU HAPPY!?"

"Turn around, Valentine."

My body stiffens in fear.

"You're dead," I reply, voice hoarse. I'd heard the snap of her neck, and I had to swallow hard to keep from vomiting.

"Look at me."

I shake my head, eyes whelming in tears.

"Leny. Look at me!!" Raine screams in my head, using her nickname for me.

"NO!" I scream back.

Someone appears in front of me, and I look up to see a beautiful blonde girl staring at me in concern. She was transparent, but I could see her features very clearly. Her haunted, cold brown eyes stare back into my own icy cold Antarctic ones.

"You grew up gorgeous." She whispers, looking at me in pride. I shake my head, pursing my lips in agony.

"Raine?" I whisper, and Raine smiles.

"My soul erupted from my body the moment I died. You're considered a spirit here too, even though you aren't dead. Do me a favour and kill the man when you see him next. I have a few colourful words for the fucker." She snarls.

I'm silent, but her words have me nodding. He'd die the next time I saw him. If I ever did.

"Leny," Raine whispers, eyes softening and becoming that warm autumn brown that felt like home. She smiles at me and gives my head a fond tap like she always did. "Leny, it does no good dwelling on the past. Let it go. Let it go and be free."

I stare at her in bewilderment but she just smiles. "You never know how strong you are...until being strong is the only choice you have."


	43. A Pool of Red

I stumble out of the vision in fiery pain.

I was screaming. I couldn't stop.

I fall to the floor, stumbling back.

"Valentine!!!" My grandmother screeches and I shake my head. I did not want to talk to her.

I dry heaved, trying to get rid of the sick feeling in my stomach. It just stuck there. Like someone was trying to increase my inner torment.

The scars on my back were in searing agony, and I screamed again.

"My child. I am truly sorry." Abaddon says in a hush, his own voice cracking in pain. "What do you wish me to do." He begs me.

"G-get m-me out of here." I sob out loud, and Abaddon nods, engulfing us in his magic.

"Valentine!! Sweetie, listen to me!! What did you see!?" She begs me to answer.

I don't.

Instead, I'm crawling away, my whole body falling outside the portrait in a weak aching heap. I was crying, hysteric shrieks exiting my lips. My hands clutched my stomach, hurling myself into as tight as a ball as I could.

As if the friction would take away the burning ache I was feeling.

"You need to stand Valentine," Abaddon whispers gently. I do as he says, a mindless drone. I stumble to my feet, and I haul myself towards the nearest bathroom.

I collapse to the floor, silencing the room with a wave of my hand, and I let out a bloodcurdling scream.

The sinks around me explode.

It was a primal scream. A scream of years and years of pain and torture bottled up into one deafening shriek of rage.

The pain takes over a portion of my brain, and I can't think about anything else.

I was getting hot.

It felt like my body was on fire. I was sweating. Ripping off my shirt, I scream again.

Whipping my hand out, I send the bathroom stalls all crashing into one another until they blew up in a union. They slam into the walls so hard, the architecture quivers.

The scars on my back were pulsing.

I felt every whip.

I felt every attack.

They start to bleed, and the liquid oozes from my back in a river of red. My legs collapse from under me. They'd been shaking too much. I grab onto the wall, and my hands trembled.

"STOP IT!! STOP IT!!!" I yelled at my hands so loud, my voice cracked. "Stop trembling!!!! STOP SHAKING!!! WHY ARE YOU STILL AFRAID!?!" I scream.

"W-why a-am I still afraid?" I sob, covering my face with my bloodied up hands. They shook tremendously.

I cried.

I bawled my eyes out, salty tears escaping me in oceans. I fall to my side, covering my eyes with my arm. I cried so hard I felt my soul try to escape. I sobbed like my spirit was being ripped away from my body.

My scars were reopening, my blood pooling around me in a way eerily similar to that day in the orphanage.

All I could think of was Raine.

All I could see was her mangled neck.

All I could hear was that deafening crack. All I could smell was the rustic sent of her blood mixed with salt and booze.

I could see her eyes. Her brown, dead, dead eyes. Never had I seen brown eyes so lifeless before.

I could feel the skin of her hands. The ones I'd grabbed in a desperate attempt to save her. The ones I'd cried over for days. The ones I had refused to let go. The hand that had held my hand when I was having a nightmare. The hand that had been my rock.

The hand I had to let go.

Just like the pink rose, I'd let drop to the top of her coffin. I could still hear the thud of the stem when it slammed into the wooden box.

My upper body and shoulders wrack with every sob that forces its way out. My chest rises and falls unevenly with every gasp of breath I try to take.

Squeezing my eyes shut, I ball my hands into fists and scream. Again and again. Over and over.

Until my voice was no more. Until I was reduced to a whimpering mess.

Until I was alone.

Alone to face my demons. Alone to face my fears.

"You are never alone." Abaddon chides me gently. "I will always be here to love and protect you." He whispers in my ear like a loving parent.

"Do you feel better?" A voice gently asks.

I was so tired I don't even bother answering or voicing my shock. I had no more voice anymore, anyways.

"I always come here to cry too." The voice says again. The stranger steps up and goes to sit crisscrossed by my head. I was still lying on my floor. My back to the ground and my eyes staring emotionlessly at the ceiling.

The voice belonged to a girl.

She sat in the pool of blood, not even caring about her clothes. She looked as miserable as I did.

She was short and stubby with a curvy stature. One might even say she was plump. Her face was covered in stress pimples, and she wore thick-rimmed glasses that covered the majority of her face.

Her eyes were a dark brown that heaved depression. Her matching hair fell limp around her pale, almost ghostly face.

I turn my head slowly to stare at her properly, my eyes emitting the utter death in my soul. "Valentine Dumbledore." She states slowly and then scoffs. "Everyone knows you. You're the most powerful witch in the school. Only Tom Riddle outshines you." She seemed to be talking to herself.

"Even Olive Hornby is jealous of you, and she's the most popular girl in school." The girl scoffs.

"I'm highly confused," Abaddon admits in my head. "Why isn't she running away screaming? It looks like something possessed you in here." He admits.

"Like you?" I think at him.

"Ha. Ha. Ha. Funny." He scoffs.

"You really destroyed this place." She points out, making me give her a deadpanned look.

"Oh! I was just coming in to cry again when I heard you start screaming. I was highly concerned, you see." She admits, making me look away to stare at the ceiling again.

My throat hurt like a bitch. It throbbed, and I could taste blood whenever I swallowed. I wouldn't risk speaking.

I couldn't speak. It hurt to just think about speaking.

"You probably can't speak after all that screaming." She reads the expression on my face. I don't answer, so she takes that as confirmation.

"They make fun of me, you know." She chokes a bit on her words, tears whelming in her eyes.

"I'm never good enough. Or pretty enough. I'm never smart enough or powerful enough." She mutters, dipping her hand in the puddle of my blood. She raises her hand and stares at it, intrigued.

"I'm ugly." She whispers. "I'm stupid, and I'm a freak. A Mudblood. They mock me for who my parents are." Tears fall and splash into the pool of blood we both decided to bathe in today.

"What could have possibly happened to you?" She breathes, staring at me. "What made Valentine Dumbledore crack. That perfect facade shattered under the pressure of a thousand stones."

I stare up at the ceiling, unmoving.

"Your scars are bleeding." She points out. "You should probably go see Madame Strout." The girl whispers.

She talked a lot when she was nervous, I realized.

"Do they hurt?" She asks.

They didn't.

I couldn't feel a thing.

I was numb all over. From my toes to the tip of my head, I felt nothing. Just a deep numbing feeling that wouldn't go away.

"They probably do, but I think the emotional pain is blocking it out."

And this girl thought she was dumb?

"Do you need help getting to your dorm room?" She asked.

I don't answer. I don't even move.

I did not want to return to the dorms. No way in Hell.

"Do you want to stay here?" She whispers softly.

I turn to give her a look and then return to staring at the ceiling. It was calming to look at something so still. Calming to stare at the white of the ceiling. The white that contrasted to the dark inside me. It gave me an anchor. It gave me a rope to grab so I could return to the world of the living when I was ready. I wasn't prepared right now. So I stayed in place, hands gripping the rope loosely.

"We're staying here then." The girl mutters and then moves to get more comfortable from her place on the floor.

"I'll keep you company then. I have nothing to go back to in my own dorms anyways." She says the last bit in a hush, but I still heard it.

And so we spent the night in the bathroom, fighting off both of our demons. I stayed silent the whole time, trying to organize the chaos inside of me. The girl couldn't shut up. She was trying to control her depression by bringing up all her pent up feelings and organizing her own chaos from the outside.

It was early in the morning, and we could start to hear the birds chirping. We were both lying down, the thickness of my blood surrounding us like we were drowning in a lake of red.

We could hear the birds start to sing, and I finally close my eyes, before my body finally shuts down, I hear the girl say one last thing.

"Oh, I'm Myrtle, by the way. Myrtle Warren."


	44. Myrtle's Demons Come to Visit

I wake up only to find myself in the Hospital Wing. My clothes were blood ridden, and my back was no longer aching as it had been

Myrtle was sitting to my side, fast asleep.

I sit up and gaze around, my hand fumbling for my locket. The compass props open in my hand, and I sigh. It was still the same damn thing. The black diamond stone stood out from its place on someone's hand. The symbol was still just as blurry as it had been the last time I opened my locket to peer into it.

There were some bandages on my wrists, and my back was heavily bandaged as if someone was afraid I would bleed to death.

Valid.

Myrtle startles awake, and she gazes at me silently. "Are you alright?" She asks. I open my mouth to answer, but nothing comes out. I nod in response, making Myrtle's eyes widen in realization.

"Oh, Madam Strout told me to give this to you when you woke up." She says, handing me a goblet filled with a clear liquid substance. I sniff it, eyeing it wearily.

"Come now. I'm sure it won't kill you." She smiles, making me purse my lips. I chug it down, and the liquid comes sputtering up. Some of it goes down, though.

"Ugh!! What is that!!" I shriek in disgust. I blink, realizing my voice was back. "Wow." I murmur amazed.

"It wasn't going to be pumpkin juice." Myrtle scoffs, making me smile at her.

"Thanks for sticking around." I give her a smile, making Myrte smile back. She was getting up, a look of sadness on her face.

"Yeah. Of course." She murmurs. My eyebrows furrow and I stare at her in confusion.

"Where are you going?" I ask, and she shrugs.

"This is the part where people usually cast me aside." She admits, brown eyes sad. I shake my head, lunging to grab her hand.

"No! No! I was thanking you! I don't want you to leave! You're my friend."

Myrtle sits down on her chair, stunned. "What?" She breathes. Her eyes were watering, and her upper lip was quivering. "I-I'm your f-friend?" She whispers in nothing but a gasp.

I nod, smiling softly. "Of course you are Myrtle. You were there for me during one of the darkest times of my life. If that's not friendship, then I don't know what is." I beam at her.

My words cause an eruption of tears to burst from the girl in front of me.

"I-I've NEVER HAD A FRIEND BEFORE!" She sobs and I blink in surprise. My heart melts, and my eyes soften.

"Well, you have one now," I say and grab her hand, smiling tiredly. Myrtle was sniffling, staring at me with gratitude shining in her eyes.

"I-I don't k-know what to say." She sobs, making me shake my head at her. I swing my legs over and sigh, covering my face in emotional exhaustion.

"You don't need to say anything, love. We're friends. I'll be there to pick you up when you fall. I'll tell you when you look like shit and then help you, so you don't feel like it anymore. I'll always be there for you, and if you need someone to help you destroy a bathroom... well, you have my credentials and know my experience." I wink at her, making her let out an amused laugh.

"Now help a girl up, please. I'm actually starving." I groan, and Myrtle helps me instantly.

"Madame Strout said to inform her when you woke up." She whispers, and I shake my head.

"No need. I'm healthy and alive." I retort, making her give me a look. I purse my lips.

"Okay, physically. Emotionally I'm fucked up." I raise my hands up in exasperation. She giggles, throwing her head back then shrugs.

"Girl, we are all fucked up in our own ways."

I blink and nod in agreement, linking my hand through hers. "Ain't that the truth." I agree with her.

"At least let her look at your cuts." Myrtle sighs, making me shake my head.

"No. My back won't heal, no matter what she does. The scars are too bad, so it's fine. I'm used to them." I muse, walking outside of the Infirmary, Myrtle rushing after me.

"Come on, Valentine!! You're in your pyjamas too!" She calls after me, rushing towards my side. I shoot her a smile.

"Not like I give two shites about who the hell sees me in my pj's." I laugh. She hugs herself, looking away.

"I wish I had your confidence." She whispers, making me stop and look at her.

"Who the fuck is this bitch who keeps bullying you?!" I snap, and she looks up in shock. I was done with people belittling others, especially someone as kind as Myrtle. I knew exactly what her bullying did to her. It killed her.

I wouldn't let her die.

Not this time.

This time around, she had a friend.

I grab her hand, wand in my hand, dragging her towards the Great Hall. "Who is it, Myrtle? Tell me! I'll make them regret ever messing with you!"

I was seething, and she shakes her head. "I- I-" She looks down at her shoes, almost ashamed. "I'm not as strong as you. Whenever you aren't around, they'll harass me even more. There's no use. I'm used to it, Valentine." She croaks, tears whelming in her eyes.

My teeth grit in anger on behalf of the girl. A vision slams into me at my uncontrollable emotions, and the hand that was gripping Myrtle's hands.

I see her crying. Myrtle.

She was sobbing. Heart-wrenching sobs, as she stumbled into the bathroom. The same washroom where I had my own breakdown. I was watching her have hers.

She screams, slamming her fist into one of the mirrors. She hits it over and over again, punching it with all her pain, all her agony. She was bleeding.....the mirror was breaking....yet she still screamed punching it with all her might.

Her finger cracked.

It bent sideways, and I felt the bile rise in my throat.

My heart stilled.

Tears whelm in my eyes as I watch her fall, her screams echoing in my ears.

I blink back into reality, forcing a smile on my lips. "L-Let's just go eat," I whisper, clutching her hand tighter. My eyes go to her hand, my gaze going to her index finger.

We walk in silence, my heart still thudding, and I barge into the Great Hall, sitting at the Ravenclaw table. I ignore the whispers that deafen me the second I walk in the room.

Myrtle looks at me as I sit across from her, piling food high on my plate. Pan and Greta move quickly to my side.

"Oh my gosh, Val!!" Greta greets me in worry, pulling me into a hug. Her hug warmed my insides. "I heard what happened!! Are you alright!!?" She looked close to tears, hugging me ferociously. I nod at her, swallowing the lump in my throat.

"Yeah. Yeah... It was just an accident." I smile up at her. "Guys, this is Myrtle Warren. Myrtle, this is Pandora Lovegood and Greta Ollivander." I introduce them to one another.

"Charmed, my dear." Pan smiles at Myrtle.

"Lovely to meet you." Greta sends her one of her warmest smiles. Myrtle instantly relaxes after that. Her nervous stance seems to stabilize, and I relax myself.

"Are you sure you're alright, Val?" Pan asks, grabbing my other hand. Greta was still hugging me to my vast amusement. At my nod, Pan smacks my shoulder.

"NEVER scare me like that again!! I swear I'm getting gray hairs hanging out with the lot of you!" She whines.

"Pan, your hair is white, it wouldn't show anyways." Greta teases her friend.

"WHY I- That's a lie! Grey hairs are the bane of any woman's existence! I'm growing old!" She scoffs.

"WHY DID YOU GUYS NOT TELL ME WE WERE SITTING AT THE RAVENCLAW TABLE!!" Abby screeches, glaring at us.

Her gaze softens when she meets my tired ones. "Valentine! How are you feeling!? The professors wouldn't let anyone is to see if you were alright! The buggers. I ought to punch em all." She mutters, moving to sit beside Myrtle.

She stares at the girl weirdly, and then her eyes brighten. She leans forward and fixes Myrtle's glasses. "There! They were crooked. It was making me anxious." She mutters. "I'm Abby!" She chimes, making Pan roll her eyes.

"Abigail."

"IT'S ABBY!!"

Myrtle grins in amusement, a light appearing in her eyes. A light that wasn't there before.

"I'm Myrtle." She answers shaking her hand in greeting,

"I swear the professors are only present after disaster strikes." Abby scoffs, making me chuckle as I point one of my carrot sticks at her.

"That's the understatement of the year."

Aby chuckles, pointing her own carrot at me like she had the first breakfast we had together. We clink our carrots together, only for Greta to stick her own carrot in the mix, grinning in glee.

"Hey, me too!!" Pan steals a carrot from my plat, clinking it with ours.

We all turn to look at Myrtle with expecting looks. She turns red and stares at us bashfully.

"Here. It's easy." Greta hands her a carrot, eyes kind. Myrtle grabs it, eyes surprised, and then grins at us, clinking her own carrot with all of ours.

"Now, all we need is some dip for these damn carrots!" Abby sticks the carrot in her mouth.

"Ou, that'd be nice." I nod at her, biting mine as well.

"Your cheek feeling better?" Pan asks me, as she set her carrot to the side, moving to grab a tomato. She bites into it like one would an apple.

"That's disgusting." Greta laughs, grabbing an apple tart.

"My face is fine. It just needs to heal. The poison in it was intense." I answer her.

"I still can't believe you wouldn't let any of us punch the guy in the face," Abby mutters.

"Why are you always punching people?" Pan sighs.

"Punching people is good. Relieves stress." Myrtle agrees, grabbing an apple and munching into it, her eyes staring at Pan's tomato warily.

"Yes! Thank you!" Abby high fives the girl beside her. "Why didn't you introduce me to her before?" Abby scolds me, making me shrug.

"I literally met her a couple hours ago." I chuckle, making Myrtle grin. "She was the one that found me in the girl's bathroom." I pipe, asking Greta to pass me a tart. She hands me the one she'd bitten out of and motions for me to give her my half-eaten cheesecake.

We switch, and I bite into the tart with a groan. "I love food." I sigh, and Pan scoffs.

"That's the only advancement in your love life." She muses, making me gape at her.

"Excuse me!? I'm highly lovable! My love life is not an issue!" I glare at her, and she grins, shaking her head in amusement.

"I beg to differ."

"Yeah. You love beating people up and food. That's it." Abby points out.

"You two agreed on something again." I sneer, pointing at the pair. They glare at each other as a response.

"When they both agree, then you know it's true." Greta giggles, biting the cake I'd swapped with her.

"You're your own knight in shining armour." Myrtle pipes up, getting more and more comfortable around us. "There's no problem in that. Boys suck anyway." She sticks her tongue out in disgust.

"Excuse me? Have you seen some of the guys around here?" Abby grins, eyebrows moving up and down like caterpillar.

"Translation... Have you seen Tom Riddle?" Greta interprets Abby's words, making me hold a hand to my mouth, trying to stop my laughter.

"Oh shut it, Greta!" Abby goes dark red. "He's not bad to look at...that's all!" She demands, ripping a piece of her carrot off in her agitation.

"What did that poor vegetable do to you?" Pan demands, looking at Abby, her own eyebrows raised.

"It annoyed me!"

"So you'll rip the head off of anyone who annoys you? Is that it?"

"YES!"

"How barbaric!"

"You're barbaric!"

"That's such a smart comeback, honestly!! No wonder-"

Myrtle was staring at them, banter back and forth eyes wide. Greta sees her expression and giggles. "They're always like this. No need to look so concerned."

"Yeah, unless they start shooting spells, and end up almost taking off our heads for real," I mutter.

"THAT WAS ONE TIME!" Abby shrieks, glaring at me, hearing my retort.

"There shouldn't have even been a one time!" I laugh, making her point at Pan. Myrtle bursts out laughing, covering her mouth with her hand.

"Well... Well looks like the four-eyed brat is laughing. Even your laugh is pathetic!" The insult pierces through our conversation.

Myrtle's eyes water slightly, and her face goes red. She was no longer laughing. She was no longer smiling.

My friends all freeze, and we still in shock. No was expecting her words. No one was expecting someone to bully our friend.

All I could see at that moment was Myrtle sobbing in the girl's bathroom. My heart thuds unsteadily and my hands shake as my eyes dart to her index finger.... as if making sure it wasn't broken was still telling me she was alright. I could hear nothing but Myrtle's screams at that moment. I look up and meet my friend's tear-stained eyes.

Whirling around, I see the offender.

Her gloating aqua eyes meet my furious blue ones.

Whack

The sound of the slap resonates through the entirety of the Great Hall. Pan was by my side, her wand pointing at the girl's throat threateningly. Greta was to my other side, her own wand, a tool defending Myrtle.

Abby was standing on the table, defending our backs. Her arms were crossed, and she looked lethal.

"You disgusting girl!" Pan screeches, lunging to attack her. Claude suddenly appears out of nowhere, wrapping his arms around the Ravenclaw and keeping her in place.

"You LOATHSOME TOAD! I WILL MAKE SURE YOU NEVER SEE THE LIGHT OF DAY AGAIN!" Pan screams.

"Whoa, Pan." Chris walks up beside Pan wrapping a protective arm around a trembling Greta. Greta turns in a result to step across the table and engulf a shaking Myrtle in her hands.

"Why are you guys defending her!" The girl demands, turning red in anger. as she put a hand to her red cheek in pain. "She's a hideous nuisance!!" She points at Myrtle in rage.

Gideon rushes up, putting a hand on his sister's shoulder. "What's going on?" He asks in concern. 

His voice wavered slightly. He was scared of losing his twin again.

Greta gives her brother a soothing smile.

"You ever come near her again... I will end you." I snarl, eyes glaring at her in anger.

"Abigail, get down from there." Avery strolls up with Nott in tow. He plucks the Hufflepuff from off the table, placing an elbow on the girl's shoulder. Avery glares at the bully in agitation then at all of us. "The lot of you are ruining breakfast. Do you all mind?" He drawls.

"I'm one second from punching you." Abby snarls at the Slytherin, turning pale in her anger.

Nott stares at me in silence. I meet his eyes pondering, and he looks away, hands going into the front pockets of his pants.

"I'll help you," Chris mutters from his spot beside me. The blonde had a hand on my wrist, stopping me from slapping the girl again.

"Olive!" A girl runs up to grab the brunette who'd been terrorizing Myrtle. "She's not worth it! Let's go!" She drags the unwavering girl away.

"This is not over." Olive hisses at Myrtle. "You might have new friends, but you're still-"

Abby shoves her hard.

"Get out of here, bitch." My friend hisses like a snake.

Tom would've approved. My eyes flit over to the boy, at the thought.

He was staring at us. His eyes meet mine the second I look his way. Tilting his head to the side, his look of intrigue never once wavers. He eyes the bandage on my cheek with a raised eyebrow.

I sense someone pulling at my mind, and I let him in, not enough for him to wander around seeing all my memories but enough so that we could speak telepathically.

I leave you for a couple hours, and you look half dead. Tsk. Tsk. Dumbledore.

A smile makes its way on my lips, and I whip over to give him an amused look.

Your majesty should I beg my pardon. I scoff back at him, as he lets me into his mind as well.

You may.

I might just murder you in your sleep, Riddle.

You couldn't even if you wanted to Dumbledore.

Why ever not?

Because you care about me.

I stop and raise a brow at him, a smirk tugging at the corner of my lips. I stroll over to the Slytherin table, walking over with all the confidence of a queen. The scars on my back made my head tilt up high in pride. They did not waver my steps.

I didn't care that all of Hogwarts was watching my every move like I was some actress in a movie. I slam my palm on the table, standing across from where Tom sat.

Like a panther, my smirk doesn't defer one bit, and I meet Tom's dark eyes. They were filled with amused, calm curiosity.

"You wish, Riddle." My voice was velvet, cutting through the silence of the hall.

I whirl around, my hair swinging in turn to every move I made. I start to walk away and stop, seeing Olive snicker at Myrtle from the corner of my eye.

My eyes meet Greta's, and she stands up wand pointing at Olive the same time mine does.

We send out spells at the same time.

They hit her dead center, and Olive hits the ground with a scream.

Grabbing Myrtle, Pan, Abby, Greta, we all walk out of the Great Hall.

And we walk out like damn queens.


	45. Rip Up a Part of Your Soul

It was early March, and things were going well. The days had passed very quickly, and I was reviewing my class notes, trying to get ahead for finals.

Avery sits in the chair across from mine. I don't even look up. "What are you doing? You don't study." I muse, making him scoff.

"I study.... sometimes." He adds after I look up, giving him a look.

Rosier strolls up to smack Avery upside his head. "What the hell, man!?" Avery demands, and Rosier gives him a fake smile.

"Stop annoying the poor girl." He drawls, pulling out his own potions book and giving his friend a look.

"I wasn't annoying her!? Val, was I annoying you?" Avery hisses the last part. I smile, still working on my Potions equations.

"No, of course not Avery," I reply, making Avery stick his tongue out at his friend.

"HA!" Avery demands.

Abby sighs, slamming her books down beside Avery. She lets out a loud groan. "I'm DOOMED!!!" She wails.

The boys stare at her in question.

"How so may I ask?" Rosier asks finally, his brown eyes looking at her weirdly. Abby groans, banging her head on the table.

"I'm going to FAIL!!"

"You aren't going to fail, Abby. You haven't even opened a textbook since the beginning of the term. Try studying." I quip back at my friend, making her shoot me a glare.

"Says YOU!!" She scowls, and I huff offended.

"I study hard for my grades. Thank you very much." I raise a brow at her, watching as Myrtle slumps in the seat beside me, Greta to her side.

"Why are you all studying already!?" Myrle screeches, scrambling to find her books in her backpack. "Finals are months away." She squeaks again, paling in worry.

"It's probably Val, Myrtle. Don't worry. You know how she gets." Greta laughs, making Myrtle purse her lips, still deciding to study with us.

"Why are you two hanging around this lot?" Nott scowls, looking at the table in disgust, glaring at Rosier and Avery.

"Actually, don't answer that. Avery's idea, wasn't it?" He mutters, moving into the spot to my right. "Stupid crush of his is driving us insane." He scowls only to have Mulciber smack him upside his head, appearing out of nowhere.

"It's not his fault you're a heartless bastard who cares about no one but yourself."

"I have no comments." Nott narrows his grey eyes at his friends.

"Because it's true, you daft imbecile." Lestrange pulls up a chair to sit beside Nott on his other side.

"Why are you guys obsessed with us?" Pan asks, looking at the boys in amusement. She moves to sit in between Greta and Abby.

"Obsessed? With you guys? More like Avery obsessed with-" Avery elbows Lestrange roughly silencing the boy.

"You know violence isn't always the answer." I muse, not looking up from the equations I was rewriting.

"Says the girl who bitch-slapped Olive so hard, her head almost twisted around like an owl." Myrtle muses, eyes on her own Potions book.

I point my quill at her. "That was the best bitch slap I'd ever given. You should be delighted it was given protecting your honour." I tease, making the girl grin.

She holds a hand to her forehead in a mock faint. "Oh, thank you, my prince, charming." She demands chuckling.

"More like ogre charming." Nott scowls.

"No one asked for your input," Pan snides, tapping her own quill on her forehead deep in thought.

"No one asked for yours." Nott strikes back.

"I'd be a wonderful prince charming," I say in defence, offended.

"Yes, I can see it now. Prince Dumbledore, riding on a hippogriff, coming to save the day." Avery scoffs, making Greta giggle at the imagery.

"At least she'd be saving someone! You wouldn't get off your arse to save yourself." Abby scolds him.

"Why are we always left out these days?!" Claude demands, giving us offended looks as he and Chris moved to sit at the table. It had gotten so crowded, the small table supposed to seat six people was now housing double that.

"We're studying Zabini. Might want to learn how to do that." Rosier chides our redheaded friend.

"At least I can talk to the girl I like, rather than hanging around her all the time like a stalker." He muses, not skipping a beat. Rosier glares at him so hard, he might as well have burned a hole through the side of his head.

I rummage through my backpack for a second and pause when I see a couple restricted section books.

'Please Val!! Pretty please!!! I'm so bored!!!" Abaddon begs, and I smile at my demon.

I quickly replace my Potions book in my bag, transfiguring one of the texts into my Transfiguration book. I pull it out, and only my eyes can see the title of the book.

Secrets of the Darkest Art.

I realized this was the book I'd picked up months ago and forgotten about. I lean back into my chair and open it to the first page. To anyone peeking, it would've been one of the fundamental transfiguration spells but to myself and Abaddon... It was a page the held the table of contents for the book.

My finger skims the topics.

Gouging someone's eyes out with a thought....boiling someone's blood..... castrating someone with a swipe of one's fingers..... causing indescribable pain with a thought........ melting someone's organs with a snap of your fingers..... covering someone's body in third-degree burns...

My finger skims over the entire page, and I enter a vision.

"I need to know the secret. Where is it!!??"

The voice was so cold, it sent shivers down my spine. Tom Riddle was in my line of sight.

"Horcruxes." He whispers in wicked awe. The smirk he was wearing made my blood run cold.

"Finally. I'll be immune to death. I'll be unstoppable." He cackles, throwing his head back and letting out the evilest laugh I'd ever heard in my life.

The vision changes:

I was staring at Tom's back as he walked towards Professor Slughorn, who was in a tiger print robe.

Tom was stalking him like a wolf. His eyes were cold as I moved to get a better view of them. Tom stared at the professor with mock respect, using the charming aura he always did.

"I was in the library the other night...looking at the restricted section, and I read something rather odd about a bit of rare magic..." Tom acts confused.

Slughorn's beaming smile was dimming with every word coming from Tom's mouth, his grip on his wine glass getting tighter and tighter.

The flash of satisfaction at his professor's fear goes unnoticed by Slughorn...but I see it, clear as day.

"It's called, as I understand it..." He pauses before looking at Slughorn dead in the eye. "A Horcrux." He was still and confident as always.

Only Slughorn's reaction had me shivering. It wasn't helping that I kept hearing screaming. Loud screeching was ringing in my ears. It was like metal on metal, and it was deafening.

I was terrified. My palms were sweaty, and my whole body shook.

Slughorn's eyes were as wide as saucers.

"I beg your pardon?" He demands, thinking he heard him wrong.

"A Horcrux," Tom repeats again. He realizes how strange it must've been, asking about something so random and with no warning. "I came across it while reading." He acts confused and bewildered again. "And I didn't fully understand it."

"I'm not sure what you're reading, Tom...but this is very dark stuff....very dark indeed," Slughorn warns him. Instantly another act is up another one of his defence mechanisms.

"Which is why I came to you..." Tom gives him a mock look of utter respect.

Slughorn's eyes couldn't have gotten any wider if they'd tried. He looked utterly horrified. He answers slowly, almost afraid to say the words.

"A Horcrux is an object in which a person has concealed a part of their soul." Slughorn answers.

My mouth goes dry. What!? A part of their soul? Tom wanted to rip his bloody soul up?

"But, I don't understand how that works, sir?" Tom pushes the matter further, stepping closer to the professor. His proximity was enough to give someone an anxiety attack.

The screeching got louder.

"One splits one's soul and hides part of it in an object. By doing so, you are protected...should you be attacked and your body destroyed." Slughorn was delving deeper into the matters that Tom was genuinely interested in.

"Protected?!" Tom conceals his emotions like a stone, but I know his eyes. Those eager, rage-filled, dark, evil eyes. He lost his composition for that split second, and I saw it all. 

"The part of your soul that is hidden lives on." Slughorn swallows slowly, saying the next words in a whisper. "In other words, you can not die."

The metal on metal was deafening, and I had to step closer to hear them.

Tom turns away, deep in thought. He stares at the fireplace in contemplation.

"How does one split his soul, sir?"

"I think you already know that, Tom."

Tom says the next words in a hush, "Murder."

If I had been holding something, I would've dropped it. I stagger back, trying to control my erratic, fearful breathing.

"Yes... Killing rips the soul apart. It is a violation against nature."

Tom was playing with something on his hand. I move closer to him and see him playing with a ring. A black diamond ring..... the ring from my compass.

My mouth goes dry.

"Can you only split the soul once?" Tom ponders in that calming, serene, terrifying voice. The hairs on the back of my neck stood on end, and the blood drained from my face, just like Slughorn. "For instance.... seven?

"Seven?" Slughorn gapes. The look in his eyes made me think the professor knew that he was making a huge mistake, but he kept talking, feeding the Dark Lord every ounce of his need for knowledge.

"Merlin's beard, Tom. Isn't it bad enough killing one person?! To rip the soul into seven pieces... "

I wince, the screeching was now screaming in my ears. The pain was getting to me, making me dizzy, but I needed to hear what they said.

He stops and then as if realizing something, he relaxes. "This is all hypothetical, isn't it Tom? All academic?"

Tom turns around, the murderous look on his face morphing into a smirk until he smiled pleasantly as always. "Of course, sir."

His words make Slughorn sigh in relief.

"It'll be our little secret." 

I'm ripped from the vision, and I couldn't breathe. I couldn't think. I didn't even know what to think.

Tom had looked a couple years older than he did now. Maybe in his fifth or sixth year.

My eyes move down to the table of contents.

There my fingers hadn't moved from their spot on the page. The place that had made me see the visions. The title of the last chapter of the book stared at me, and my hands wouldn't stop shaking even if I willed them to.

Horcruxes: What are they and how to make them.


End file.
